Houston QF previews and predictions: Isner vs. Chung, Querrey vs. Monaco

Fellow big-hitting Americans John Isner and Sam Querrey will continue their Houston campaigns on Friday. They are set for respective quarterfinal encounters with Hyeon Chung and Juan Monaco.

(1) John Isner vs. Hyeon Chung

Isner and Chung will be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers when they battle for a semifinal spot at the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championship on Friday. This is the beginning of a big clay-court swing for Isner, who is looking to make amends for relative struggles earlier in the season. The 6’10” American’s last four losses have come in final-set tiebreakers, including the first three from match point up and the most recent one at the hands of countryman Tim Smyczek in the Miami second round. Isner is a disappointing 9-6 for the season–7-6 in ATP tournament action–after scraping past Denis Kudla 7-6(2), 7-6(4) on Wednesday.

Chung advanced to the quarterfinals with three-set victories over Victor Estrella Burgos and Tommy Paul. His match against Paul marked the first time at the ATP level that Chung had faced someone younger than he is. The 19-year-old Korean is a decent 7-8 for his 2016 campaign and he registers at No. 71 in the world. With Chung competing his second career quarterfinal and aiming for his maiden semifinal appearance, Isner obviously owns a huge edge in experience. The top seed is a former champion of this event (2013) and is a proven force on clay even though he does his absolute best work on hard courts.

Pick: Isner in 2

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(5) Sam Querrey vs. Juan Monaco

Querrey and Monaco will be squaring off for the sixth time in their careers on Thursday. Monaco is leading the head-to-head series 4-1, including 3-0 on clay. He prevailed in three sets nine years ago in Estoril, again in three at the 2010 World Team Championship in Dusseldorf, and 6-3, 6-1 last spring in Nice. Querrey’s lone victory over the Argentine came on the hard courts of Cincinnati back in 2007.

The 35th-ranked American’s week up to this point has included defeats of players who are most dangerous on grass (lucky loser Reilly Opelka and German veteran Benjamin Becker). It’s safe to say that the trend will end against Monaco, who has always preferred the slow stuff. Slowly making his way back from a 2015 wrist injury, the 32-year-old may finally be getting into the groove following Houston wins over Gerald Melzer and No. 2 seed Benoit Paire. Monaco has taken the his last four clay-court sets against Querrey 6-2, 6-3, 6-3, and 6-1; even if he is no longer in his prime, he should once again have an edge on this surface.

Pick: Monaco in 3

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