A blockbuster quarterfinal lineup continues on Friday in Indian Wells. Novak Djokovic is going up against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Andy Murray is battling Juan Martin Del Potro.
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. (8) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
Djokovic and Tsonga will be meeting for the 15th time in their careers when they do battle in the quarterfinals of the BNP Paribas Open on Friday. Djokovic leads the head-to-head series 9-5 after sweeping Tsonga 5-0 in 2012. The world No. 1 prevailed in Rome, at the French Open (a five-set thriller), the Olympics, the China Open, and the World Tour Finals. Only the Roland Garros encounter ended in anything other than straight sets. Tsonga last beat Djokovic in five sets at the 2010 Australian Open.
If the Frenchman can somehow get the best of his favored opponent once again, it would end the longest winning streak on tour. Djokovic has won a whopping 21 consecutive matches dating back to the start of last year’s World Tour Finals. The top-seeded Serb triumphed in Melbourne and Dubai before scoring Indian Wells victories over Fabio Fognini, Grigor Dimitrov, and Sam Querrey. Tsonga has arguably played better than Djokovic this fortnight, but the eighth seed has certainly had to work much harder. He beat American veterans James Blake and Mardy Fish both in two entertaining sets prior to a 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 scalp of Milos Raonic on Wednesday. Tsonga, who took home the Marseille title last month, boasts a 12-3 record for the season.
Djokovic interview after beating Querrey:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmHnKB3-ccc]
As recent history suggests, this is not a favorable matchup for the world No. 8. Djokovic is the best baseline player in the world and therefore can break serve more effectively than anyone else right now. Tsonga’s return, meanwhile, is the weakest part of his game so his back will be firmly against the wall if he ever drops his own serve. On a surface too slow for Tsonga’s liking, Djokovic has a clear edge.
Pick: Djokovic in 2
(3) Andy Murray vs. (7) Juan Martin Del Potro
Murray and Del Potro will be squaring off for the seventh time in their careers and for the first time since 2009 when they renew what was once a rivalry on Friday. All but one of their previous encounters ended in a Murray victory, including all three of their hard-court meetings. Del Potro’s lone win came via a 7-6(4), 6-3 decision at the Rome Masters.
Legendary Murray-Del Potro feud:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muM-UQc_Tnk]
Both players, of course, are entirely different since they last saw each other on the other side of the net. Murray is a Grand Slam champion, having finally triumphed at last summer’s U.S. Open. The third-ranked Scot is in the midst of another solid season, for which he owns a 13-1 record. So far in Indian Wells he has taken out Evgeny Donskoy, Yen-Hsun Lu, and Carlos Berlocq. Del Potro, then 2009 U.S. Open winner, has improved to 14-3 for his 2013 campaign with victories over Nikolay Davydenko, Bjorn Phau, and Tommy Haas.
Murray is the favorite on paper, but Del Potro has been more impressive in Indian Wells and he has not dropped a set nor even played a tiebreaker. The seventh-ranked Argentine could not ask for a better surface than a relatively slow, high-bouncing hard court to suit his game. Unless Murray raises his level and it coincides with a dip in his opponent’s form, Del Potro should buck the trend of their past head-to-head history.
Pick: Del Potro in 3
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