Day 1 of the ATP Tour season will feature Novak Djokovic in Doha. The top-ranked player in the world is kicking off his campaign against entertaining qualifier Dustin Brown. On Monday in Chennai, meanwhile, Borna Coric will face Marcel Granollers.
Qatar ExxonMobil Open: (1) Novak Djokovic vs. (Q) Dustin Brown
An intriguing first-round affair in Doha will pit Djokovic against Brown for the first time in their careers on Monday evening. Djokovic, of course, is coming off a positively dominant 2015 season. He captured three Grand Slam titles and did not lose any tournament since the Cincinnati Masters in mid-August. In fact, the only time Djokovic failed to contest a final came at this Doha event. The Serb got upset by Ivo Karlovic in the quarterfinals, as David Ferrer eventually lifted the winner’s trophy.
It has already been a productive tournament for Brown, who had to go through qualifying as the No. 118 player in the world. The Jamaican-turned-German successfully did just that, beating Marek Michalicka and Mirza Basic in the process. Brown famously toppled Rafael Nadal in the Wimbledon second round last summer, but he most underwhelmed on the singles court thereafter. Although he is sure to deliver plenty of entertaining shots in this one, the overall outcome should not be in much doubt.
Pick: Djokovic in 2 losing 7 games or fewer
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Aircel Chennai Open: (8) Borna Coric vs. Marcel Granollers
Coric and Granollers will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers when they square off on Monday night in Chennai. Their only previous encounter came early last year on the indoor hard courts of Zagreb, where Coric cruised 6-3, 6-3.
The 19-year-old Croat does not have home-court advantage this time around, but he is still an obvious favorite. A consistent 2015 campaign–his first full season on tour–has Coric up to No. 44 in the world. Granollers, on the other hand, struggled in both singles and doubles and is toiling down at 84th in the rankings. The 29-year-old Spaniard is a solid 7-4 lifetime in Chennai, with semifinals appearances in 2009 and 2013. But while Granollers appears to be on the way down, Coric is on the obvious rise.
Pick: Coric in 2
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who ya got?
A Happy New Year to you, Ricky and to all your readers.
Good luck and enjoy the tennis! 🙂
same to ya!
These first matches are easy. I am going with the picks – Novak winning losing 7 seven games or less and Coric winning in 2 sets.
Gonna go with coric in 2 and I’ll go kind of bold and say Nole wins in 3 due to some rust and the unpredictability of DB.
This one might be interesting if Brown shows up inspired..I don’t think Novak will dominate either way..
DON’T?
Yep…Novak lost his Doha match last year to Ivo…he usually isn’t that focused and ready this early in the year and Dastin is annoying player who does not allow his opponents gain rhythm…though he may as well not even show up for this match losing it in the locker room…but I do expect him to make this one entertaining… Or should I say: I hope?
7-6 Rafa
7-7
8-8. Overhead winner by Rafa.
another match point for the other team
Gabashvili wins 11-9 in the super breaker
Live tomorrow on TennisTV: Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal both in action from Doha (geoblocked in Europe)
https://twitter.com/TennisTV/status/683647897339064320
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Rafa & Verdasco managed to lose this match…maybe it’s justice, the other two need this win more than Rafa and Verdasco…Rafa should focus on his singles match instead…the same stands for Verdasco…
Verdasco’s volley on MP was laughable
indeed… 🙂
Gosh, Novak is destroying the German attraction…
Coric won in 3. Good start to the season for him.