Sam Querrey will kick off his Metz campaign during the first day of main-draw action on Monday. A big-serving showdown should be in store for the No. 6 seed, who is going up against Ivo Karlovic.
Sam Querrey and Ivo Karlovic will be squaring off for the sixth time in their careers and for the second time this season when they clash in round one of the Moselle Open on Monday.
Querrey leads the head-to-head series 4-1 after prevailing 6-3, 6-4 this spring at the Indian Wells Masters. They have faced each other four times on hard courts (once indoors) and Querrey has won all four of those meetings. Karlovic’s lone victory over the American came on the grass courts of Nottingham in 2008 via a 7-6(3), 7-6(14) decision.
Karlovic was plagued by a foot injury at the beginning of 2013, but he rounded into form this summer. The 6’10” Croat captured a title in Bogota and qualified for the main draw of the U.S. Open before advancing to the second round. Karlovic is 11-9 at the ATP level this year, which also includes a quarterfinal showing in Newport.
Querrey has mostly been stuck in neutral this season, watching John Isner leave him in his wake as the top American player in the men’s game. The world No. 31 reached the Winston-Salem semifinals last month, but the rest of his summer was dismal. It culminated with a second-round loss to Adrian Mannarino in New York. Querrey is 23-19 for his 2013 campaign and just 6-7 since the French Open.
Like they always are in this matchup, service breaks will be at a premium–especially on a fast indoor hard court. Whereas Querrey appears to be suffering a crisis in confidence right now, Karlovic served huge this summer. As such, the world No. 73 should have a slight edge in this one even though he is not the favorite on paper.
Pick: Karlovic in 3
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