Houston QF previews and predictions: Johnson vs. Verdasco, Querrey vs. Bellucci

Steve Johnson will try to end a disturbing head-to-head trend when he takes the court against Fernando Verdasco during quarterfinal action in Houston on Friday. Sam Querrey is also facing a left-hander in Thomaz Bellucci.

(4) Steve Johnson vs. (5) Fernando Verdasco

Johnson and Verdasco will be going head-to-head for the fifth time in their careers when they clash in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship on Friday. All four of their previous encounters–including three on clay–have gone Verdasco’s way. The 31st-ranked Spaniard prevailed at this same Houston event in 2013 and 2014 before winning twice last season (7-5, 6-4, 7-5 at the French Open and 6-4, 7-6(7) on the hard courts of Winston-Salem). Verdasco is 9-1 in total sets against Johnson, with his lone blemish coming in a 6-0, 3-6, 6-3 decision in the second round of the 2014 Houston tournament.

Obviously Johnson would have preferred to see someone other than Verdasco on the other side of the net in this one, but Kevin Anderson and Nicolas Kicker could not get the job done in that effort. This week’s No. 5 seed edged Anderson in a pair of tiebreakers before giving Kicker the boot 7-6(4), 6-1. Following a first-round bye as the fourth seed, Johnson held off Dustin Brown 7-6(12), 6-4 on Thursday. The 29th-ranked American is a solid 12-7 this year, but he is making a quick turnaround in the wake of Davis Cup duty in Australia and clay has never been his best surface. Combine those factors with his past failures in this matchup and Johnson has to be considered the underdog against Verdasco.

Pick: Verdasco in 2

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(8) Thomaz Bellucci vs. (3) Sam Querrey

In order to get a shot at Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon last summer, Querrey had to defeat Bellucci in the second round. Not surprisingly given the surface, that is exactly what the American did. Querrey took care of Bellucci 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 and the rest, of course, is history. He parlayed that resulted into a four-set upset of Djokovic and eventually reached the quarterfinals before succumbing to Milos Raonic. Ranked 25th in the world, Querrey had not done much since leaving the All-England Club until he captured the Acapulco title in February by taking out the likes of Dominic Thiem, Nick Kyrgios, and Rafael Nadal.

Querrey is 2-0 overall against Bellucci, having also scored a 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 Davis Cup victory on the indoor hard courts of Jacksonville in 2013. Now, however, the 65th-ranked Brazilian is playing on his favorite surface of red clay. Seven of his eight ATP-level match wins in 2017 have come on this surface, including two in Houston at the expense of Frances Tiafoe and Maximo Gonzalez. Bellucci will have a better chance of handling Querrey’s firepower in slow conditions and may ultimately break down the No. 3 seed from the back of the court.

Pick: Bellucci in 3

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