Fellow Americans Ryan Harrison and Jack Sock will be kicking off second-round competition in Rome on Tuesday, when they may have tough tests on their hands. Harrison is facing Marin Cilic, while Sock is going up against Philipp Kohlschreiber.
Ryan Harrison vs. (4) Marin Cilic
It will be another showdown between familiar foes when Cilic and Harrison square off for the eighth time in their careers at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Tuesday. Cilic is dominating the head-to-head series 6-1, with his only loss coming in the 2016 Acapulco first round after he had to make a quick turnaround following a final appearance across the pond in Marseille. The fifth-ranked Croat has since defeated Harrison on four straight occasions–including in the same round of this same Rome event last year (6-3, 6-2) and in the third round of the Australian Open earlier this season.
Cilic has won just a single match through two tournaments in this clay-court swing, over Fernando Verdasco in Monte-Carlo–which preceded a walkover from Milos Raonic and a quarterfinal setback against Kei Nishikori. He is coming off an opening-loss in Istanbul to an in-form Malek Jaziri. Harrison has now advanced to the second round in all three of his clay-court appearances (previously in Houston and Madrid) thanks to his 7-6(5), 6-3 victory over Yuichi Sugita on Sunday. The 57th-ranked American is playing well enough to make this more competitive than it was in 2017, but a well-rested Cilic will likely have too much firepower once again.
Pick: Cilic in 2
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Sock and Kohlschreiber could not have taken more different routes to the last 32. On paper Sock appeared to have a tough opener on his hands with David Ferrer, but the 14th-ranked American had no trouble disposing of Ferrer 6-3, 6-4 on Sunday. Kohlschreiber does not have the benefit of extra rest, as he began his week on Monday and needed three hours and five minutes to outlast Karen Khachanov 7-5, 6-7(7), 7-6(6). Now they are set for their second career head-to-head contest, with Sock having taken the first one 6-2, 7-6(3) on the indoor hard courts of Paris two years ago.
Kohlschreiber’s busy clay-court swing includes third-round performances at the two Masters 1000 tournaments and a runner-up finish in Munich. Although Sock is no slouch on clay, he has disappointed on every surface this season while struggling to build on a stellar 2017 campaign. The 25-year-old owns a 5-8 record with recent losses to Taylor Fritz (Houston quarterfinals) and Pablo Cuevas (Madrid first round). This is a good opportunity for Kohlschreiber, who should be able to cross the finish line before fatigue becomes a factor.
Pick: Kohlschreiber in 2
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who ya got?
Cilic in 3; Sock in straight.
Cilic and Sock in three setters
I can’t back Sock at the moment.
Kohl and Cilic in three .
Cilic and Kohl in 3 sets
Cilic in 2, Kohl in 3.
The final against Kohl has played Kohl into form. He seems to do well arund this time of the year after Munich.
I’d imagine Cilic would be stepping it up now heading into the French and clay isnt Harrisons best surface.
“final against Zverez”