Already in the midst of a stellar tournament, Lleyton Hewitt will hope to continue his Indian Wells campaign with a win over Stanislas Wawrinka on Monday. Ernests Gulbis, meanwhile, looks to maintain his hot streak against Andreas Seppi.
(WC) Lleyton Hewitt vs. (18) Stanislas Wawrinka
Hewitt and Wawrinka will be going head-to-head for the third time in their careers when the two veterans clash in round three of the BNP Paribas Open on Monday night. If this one is half as entertaining as their two previous encounters, the night-session crowd on stadium court will not be disappointed. Hewitt prevailed 7-5, 3-6, 7-6(5) at the 2007 Cincinnati event before Wawrinka scored a 4-6, 6-4, 6-7(7), 6-4, 6-3 win two seasons ago in a grass-court Davis Cup rubber in Australia.
Still kicking it at 32 years old, Hewitt is inside the Top 100 at 98th in the world and climbing. The former world No. 1 beat Lukas Rosol in round one then upset John Isner 6-7(6), 6-3, 6-4 on Saturday. Wawrinka earned an opening-round bye as the No. 18 seed before overcoming qualifier Wayne Odesnik 3-6, 6-2, 6-1. The Swiss is 10-5 for the season, which includes a runner-up performance in Buenos Aires. Conditions may slightly favor Hewitt, but the underdog has already played six sets this fortnight and Wawrinka will likely have too much game.
Pick: Wawrinka in 2
(20) Andreas Seppi vs. (Q) Ernests Gulbis
Seppi and Gulbis will be squaring off for the fifth time in their careers when they do battle on Monday afternoon. Gulbis leads the head-to-head series 3-1, including 1-0 on hard courts (a 6-4, 7-5 win in their most recent encounter at the 2010 Doha event). Seppi’s lone victory came via 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 decision five years ago on the clay courts of Poertschach.
The 20th-ranked Italian enjoyed the best season of his career in 2012 and he is a solid 9-5 this year following a 7-5, 6-4 scalp of an in-form Daniel Brands on Saturday. Still, this match by no means will be in Seppi’s hands. Gulbis has way too much firepower and he is finally using it to his advantage. In fact, the 67th-ranked Latvian is positively on fire right now. He has won 12 consecutive matches: three in Delray Beach qualifying, five en route to the title, two more in Indian Wells qualifying, and another two at the expense of Feliciano Lopez and Janko Tipsarevic (both in easy straight sets). When Gulbis is hot, he is simply tough to beat…but Seppi’s consistency won’t allow for a walk in the park like Tipsarevic did in round two.
Pick: Gulbis in 3
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