Frenchmen Gilles Simon and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will continue their Metz campaigns on Friday. They are set for respective quarterfinal meetings with Sam Querrey and Tobias Kamke.
(6) Sam Querrey vs. (2) Gilles Simon
Querrey and Simon will be squaring off for the fifth time in their careers and for the second time this season when they do battle in the quarterfinals of the Moselle Open on Friday afternoon. Simon leads the head-to-head series 3-1 after prevailing 2-6, 6-3, 2-6, 7-6(2), 6-2 in the third round of the French Open. They have faced each other twice on hard courts, with Simon emerging victorious both times (most recently via a 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 decision at the 2010 Bangkok event).
This is the Frenchman’s first tournament since retiring in a Cincinnati first-round match due to knee trouble. He had not won a match since the Eastbourne semis in mid-June until dismissing Kenny De Schepper 6-2, 6-3 on Thursday. Still, Simon is a respectable 30-20 for the season and registers at 16th in the world. So far this week Querrey has defeated Ivo Karlovic (in three sets) and Paul-Henri Mathieu (Mathieu retired after losing the first set). The 6’6” American owns a modest 25-19 record for the year. A fast indoor surface will give Querrey a chance, but this is not a good matchup against a consistent defensive player like Simon.
Pick: Simon in 2
[polldaddy poll=7410859]
(1) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga vs. Tobias Kamke
Speaking of Frenchmen and knee problems, Tsonga had not played since a second-round Wimbledon retirement prior to this week. The world No. 8 improved to 31-11 for his 2013 campaign with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Edouard Roger-Vasselin on Wednesday.
Up next for Tsonga is a second career meeting with Kamke, whom he defeated 6-1, 6-4, 7-6(1) in the 2010 Wimbledon third round. Kamke is 15-19 at the ATP level following Metz wins over Marc Gicquel and Martin Fucsovics. The 80th-ranked German advanced one round at the U.S. Open and is coming off a Challenger title on the indoor hard courts of Luxembourg. This won’t be routine for Tsonga, but his performance against Roger-Vasselin was encouraging.
Pick: Tsonga in 2 losing more than 8 games
[polldaddy poll=7410857]
Leave a Reply