Roger Federer and “Baby Fed” will both be in action on Tuesday in Madrid. Federer is opening with Italy’s own Potito Starace while Grigor Dimitrov and Richard Gasquet are contesting their second matches of the week.
(9) Richard Gasquet vs. Grigor Dimitrov
Gasquet and Dimitrov will be going head-to-head for the fourth time in their careers when they clash in round two of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Tuesday. Gasquet has won all three of their previous encounters; in straight sets at the 2011 Dubai event, in four sets at the 2012 French Open, and in three sets late last season in Bangkok.
Just seven months later, Dimitrov is already a much different player. The 22-year-old Bulgarian owns a 17-10 record for his 2013 campaign and it has him up to a career-high ranking of No. 26 in the world. Dimitrov reached the quarterfinals in Monte-Carlo, upset Novak Djokovic in Madrid, and he opened on Sunday in Rome with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Marcos Baghdatis. Gasquet is in similarly impressive form this season. The ninth-ranked Frenchman–a champion in both Doha and Montpellier–reached the semifinals in Miami and the quarters in Monte-Carlo, but he is looking to bounce back from an opening loss in Madrid to Daniel Gimeno-Traver. Gasquet improved his record for the year to 24-7 by dismissing Sam Querrey 6-2, 7-6(8) on Sunday.
With both men playing well, this should be a high-quality encounter featuring a pair of stellar one-handed backhands. Dimitrov’s one-hander is not quite as solid as Gasquet’s, so it will be important for the underdog to serve well and give himself a chance of dictating forehand-to-forehand rallies. Dimitrov has played a ton of tennis this spring, so Gasquet should be able to break him down in what will likely be a competitive affair.
Pick: Gasquet in 3
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(WC) Potito Starace vs. (2) Roger Federer
Federer will kick off his Rome campaign on Tuesday as he looks to bounce back from a Madrid third-round loss to Kei Nishikori. The world No. 3 has played only two matches since Indian Wells, as he bypassed Monte-Carlo and every other clay-court tournament prior to last week. Overall, Federer is 14-5 for the season and still in search of his first title.
Up first for Federer in Rome is Starace, against whom the Swiss is 6-0 lifetime. Federer is 14-1 in total sets against Starace and he has won 13 in a row since losing the second set of their first encounter at the 2004 Gstaad event. Playing at home, Starace earned his first ATP-level victory of 2013 by defeating Radek Stepanek 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 on Monday. The world No. 293 did, however, win a clay-court Challenger title last month in Napoli. Federer in straight sets is the obvious pick.
Pick: Federer 6-4, 6-3
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Dimitrov coming on strong, and I think that FedEX will bounce back from his early exit in Madrid.