Familiar foes Tomas Berdych and Kevin Anderson will go head-to-head once again in the Madrid third round on Thursday. Veterans David Ferrer and Tommy Haas are also aiming for the quarterfinals. Chris Skelton previews the action.
Kevin Anderson vs. (6) Tomas Berdych
Having defeated Anderson twice this year already, Berdych has compiled a 6-0 career record against an opponent whose game resembles his. Both men prefer to set up points behind their formidable first serves, which position them to take command with the first groundstroke if the serve does not win the point outright. Determined to dictate with their forehands, they often run around their less impressive backhands in a tactic that works especially well on clay. Mobility and versatility win them few points, although Berdych has recently improved those areas.
The Czech did not lose a set to Anderson in either of their 2013 meetings and defeated him in straight sets en route to the final here last year. More encouraging for the South African is the five-setter they played at Roland Garros 2012, their only red-clay meeting. In a match filled with twists and turns, Berdych claimed an early lead but trailed two sets to one before outlasting Anderson. A similar pattern emerged at the Paris Indoors last fall, where Berdych rallied from a one-set deficit to continue his dominance over this opponent.
Far from dominant in his last few tournaments, Berdych struggled throughout his Miami quarterfinal run and lost early at both of his clay events this year in Monte-Carlo and Barcelona. By contrast, Anderson may have gained confidence on the surface by reaching the final at a lesser tournament in Casablanca. He too fell early in Monte-Carlo, though, and he also needed three sets to survive his previous round against Juan Monaco on Wednesday. The mental challenge of snapping a six-match losing streak against Berdych will loom large unless Anderson serves significantly better than his opponent does.
Pick: Berdych in 2
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(13) Tommy Haas vs. (4) David Ferrer
Like Anderson, Haas looks to secure a first career victory over a man who defeated him earlier this year. In the Miami semifinals, two matches after he defeated world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, the 35-year-old veteran could not crack Ferrer’s defense during an arduous three-set battle. He won the first set and led by a break in the third, but the Spaniard proved too consistent and durable on that slow court. While they never have met on clay, this surface should tilt in Ferrer’s favor even more here. This personification of the traditional clay grinder has reached the semifinals at Roland Garros, finished runner-up at Masters 1000 events in Monte-Carlo and Rome, and won half of his 20 titles on the surface.
Yet Ferrer has enjoyed his clay season this year less than he usually does. Perhaps still licking his wounds from his disappointment in Miami, where he lost the final after holding a championship point, he withdrew from Monte-Carlo with a leg injury and dropped his first match in Barcelona. A finals appearance in Estoril a few days ago hinted at a revival, but his resounding loss there to Stanislas Wawrinka raised questions again. Strangely, Haas has looked the sharper of the two since their Miami meeting. The German cruised to a clay title in Munich while losing just one set all week, and he recorded convincing victories here over two talented clay specialists in Andreas Seppi and Tommy Robredo.
Favoring an offensively-oriented style, Haas will hope that the Madrid altitude adds a little extra zip to his serve so that he can collect some free points without grinding through many baseline rallies. At 35, the burden of playing seven matches in 10 days may catch up to him. One can imagine few worse opponents to face when tired than Ferrer, who methodically drained energy from Haas in Miami. It’s easy to expect a fast start from the German, for the Spaniard has not looked sharp early in most of his recent matches. Whether Haas can finish poses a much more challenging test.
Pick: Ferrer in 3
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