Marin Cilic will kick off his Moscow title defense when he takes the court on Thursday against Denis Istomin. Second-round action also features Ricardas Berankis vs. Evgeny Donskoy.
(1) Marin Cilic vs. Denis Istomin
Cilic and Istomin will be meeting for the seventh time in their careers when they battle for a quarterfinal spot at the Kremlin Cup on Thursday. The head-to-head series stands at 5-1 in favor of Cilic and all six of their previous encounters have been contested on hard courts (but all outdoors). Their first four showdowns went to Cilic–three in straight sets–before Istomin prevailed 6-3, 6-4 early last season in Sydney. The 14th-ranked Croat restored order to the proceedings with a 6-2, 4-6, 7-5 victory at the 2014 Canada Masters.
In his first appearance at this event since 2007, Cilic captured the Moscow title last year. The top seed has to be considered the favorite to triumph once again, because his 2015 campaign has picked up steam since an injury-plagued start. Cilic reached the semifinals of the U.S. Open and has advanced at least two rounds in five consecutive tournaments. Istomin began his week by taking out Aljaz Bedene 6-3, 6-3 on Wednesday. The 53rd-ranked Uzbek is an even 23-23 at the ATP level this season and he is coming off a Challenger title at home in Tashkent. Istomin is playing with confidence, but Cilic should be able to dictate play from start to finish on an indoor hard court.
Pick: Cilic in 2
[polldaddy poll=9138045]
Ricardas Berankis vs. (WC) Evgeny Donskoy
Berankis and Donskoy will be going head-to-head for the fourth time in their careers and for the first time at the ATP level on Thursday. They have faced each other three times on the Challenger circuit, with Berankis prevailing on all three occasions. The Lithuanian got the best of Donskoy in 2009 and twice in 2012, the most recent of which came on a hard court–and indoors–for the first time (Berankis won 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-1 in Orleans).
Donskoy, though, is in fine form and also has home-court advantage this time around. The 118th-ranked Russian has reached at least the quarterfinals of two straight Challenger events, including one title and one runner-up showing. He also qualified for the U.S. Open and reached the second round. Donskoy opened on Tuesday with an impressive 6-4, 6-4 defeat of Borna Coric. Berankis advanced to the last 16 by taking out Malek Jaziri via the exact same scoreline on Wednesday. The Lithuanian owns 14 ATP-level match victories this year and registers five spots off his career-high ranking at 72nd in the world. Expect a high-quality affair, with a slight edge going to Donskoy.
Pick: Donskoy in 3
[polldaddy poll=9138050]
Cilic in straights and berankis in 3
Very possible