A two-team panel makes its picks for the four men’s singles quarterfinals on Wednesday and Thursday at the U.S. Open.
(4) David Ferrer vs. (8) Richard Gasquet
Steen Kirby (Tennis East Coast) – Ferrer and Gasquet are both in good form going into this one, which is a rematch of a U.S. Open fourth-round meeting last year. Ferrer is dominating the head-to-head series, with Gasquet beating the Spaniard only once in nine tries. Gasquet, though, will be eager to improve upon that and at the bare minimum prevent this from being a straight-set affair. The Frenchman didn’t have the toughest road to the quarters until his five-set win over Milos Raonic on Monday, but in that match he showed tenacity to get the job done. Ferrer has won three of his four matches in four sets and clearly has some exploitable weaknesses if Gasquet is on his game. An upset is possible if the No. 8 seed can be somewhat aggressive rather than let Ferrer push him around the court. Gasquet 6-4, 4-6, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4.
Ricky Dimon – Ferrer is making a mockery of the head-to-head series with a 9-1 record, including 6-1 on hard courts. Their most recent encounter came at none other than last year’s U.S. Open, where Ferrer won a fourth-round meeting 7-5, 7-6(2), 6-4. Gasquet will have less in the tank this time around, because he needed four hours and 40 minutes to get past Raonic on Monday night. Ferrer has not exactly been cruising, but he is playing far better in New York than he was in Montreal and Cincinnati. Really, Gasquet has nothing in his favor going into this one. Ferrer 6-2, 7-6, 6-3.
(2) Rafael Nadal vs. (19) Tommy Robredo
Steen – Nadal appeared unbreakable until his last match, a somewhat difficult four-set win over Phillip Kohlschreiber. The German had to redline it just to get a set and keep it relatively close in sets two, three, and four, but Nadal prevailed nonetheless. Robredo, meanwhile, was tested more by his third-round opponent, Dan Evans, than by Roger Federer. Regardless, he showed mental toughness to keep the pressure on Federer as the Swiss shanked shots all over the place. Robredo will have to catch Nadal on a bad day plus play really well, himself, to have any chance in this one. As with Federer prior to Monday, Robredo has not beaten Nadal (0-6 lifetime) and it will almost certainly stay that way. Nadal 6-4, 6-2, 6-3.
Ricky – Nadal has won all six of their previous meetings, including four on hard courts, and he is 13-1 lifetime in sets against Robredo. While his upset of Federer was a huge shock, it has to bee said that Robredo is an underrated force in New York. He is 30-11 lifetime at the U.S. Open with seven fourth-round finishes and now finally a quarterfinal appearance. Still, Nadal is undefeated on hard courts in 2013 and his only loss of a set this fortnight is to Kohlschreiber–who came out of the gates on Monday completely on fire. This is not a good matchup for Robredo, whose consistent baseline play won’t trouble Nadal like it did an error-prone Federer. Nadal 7-6, 6-3, 6-3.
(3) Andy Murray vs. (9) Stanislas Wawrinka
Steen – Murray had a moody Tuesday evening during his four-set win over Denis Istomin, but like Nadal in his match with Kohlschreiber, he started slow only to finish up far more comfortably. Wawrinka took care of a glazed-over and out-of-sorts Tomas Berdych in four sets and he continues to do well in the slams this year. The head-to-head for this is reasonable (8-5 in Murray’s favor), but when you count just the hard-court meetings Murray has won six times compared to two for Wawrinka. The Swiss will have to play his absolute best tennis to have a shot, and Murray should win without too much trouble. Murray 7-6, 6-4, 7-5.
Ricky – The head-to-head history is intriguing, to say the least. Wawrinka has defeated Murray five times in 13 tries and they have split a pair of U.S. Open showdowns–Murray in straight sets in 2008 and Wawrinka 6-7(3), 7-6(4), 6-3, 6-3 in 2010. Their only other Grand Slam meeting came at Wimbledon in 2009, with Murray winning a five-setter 2-6, 6-3, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3 (the first match under the Wimbledon roof). Murray dropped sets to both Istomin and Leonardo Mayer, while Wawrinka is coming off a four-set victory over an in-form Berdych. Murray may be a considerable favorite on paper, but it’s clear that this has thriller written all over it. Murray 3-6, 6-4, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3.
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. (21) Mikhail Youzhny
Steen – Djokovic is the only player left on the men’s side who hasn’t dropped a set during the U.S. Open and his last match against Marcel Granollers was basically a walkover as the Spaniard finished the match but had no energy left whatsoever after three five-setters. Youzhny upset Tommy Haas and then pulled off a great comeback against Lleyton Hewitt in five sets to get here. Credit to Youzhny for making it this far, as he remains an often surprising performer, but this should be straightforward. Youzhny has only beaten the world No. 1 indoors; never on an outdoor hard court. Djokovic 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.
Ricky – Youzhny needed three hours and 58 minutes to overcome Hewitt in a five-set battle on Tuesday afternoon. Djokovic, on the other hand, destroyed Granollers 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 and the top seed has been the dominant player so far in New York–refusing to drop even a single set. Youzhny is a very respectable 3-5 lifetime against Djokovic, but the underdog’s last win came in 2010 and he is 0-3 in the series on outdoor hard courts. With the Russian perhaps reeling a bit from his match against Hewitt, this should be a rout. Djokovic 6-1, 7-5, 6-3.
@Rickster
Hope it ISN’T a 5 setter for Andy cos he’d be knackered for a probable encounter with a fresh Nole 🙁 which, if it happens, would mean another knackering 5 setter 🙁
So, as Steen is my new hero, am going with his pick 🙂 Hope you’re both right with the winner at any rate.
Go Andy 🙂
Not quite sure how you get your conclusions for these matches, giving statistics on the players or their head to head records does not explain why you think a player will win. It doesn’t show a good understanding of the sport. For example, look at the analysis on the Murray-Wawrinka match and the Gasquet-Ferrer match, here are two points to consider:
1. When Ferrer beat Gasquet in straight sets last year, the matched clocked in at 3 hours. That wasn’t mentioned. Nor the fact that Gasquet was up a break in the first (and I believe second) set. The signs were always there.
2. Tomas Berdych has never been ranked higher, he is playing superb tennis. Wawrinka has taken out Stepanek, Karlovic, Baghdatis, Berydch. They are all quality players. Clearly it is he who was building up his form!
@Rickster
Hope it ISN’T a 5 setter for Andy cos he’d be knackered for a probable encounter with a fresh Nole 🙁 which, if it happens, would mean another knackering 5 setter 🙁
So, as Steen is my new hero, am going with his pick 🙂 Hope you’re both right with the winner at any rate.
Go Andy 🙂
Not quite sure how you get your conclusions for these matches, giving statistics on the players or their head to head records does not explain why you think a player will win. It doesn’t show a good understanding of the sport. For example, look at the analysis on the Murray-Wawrinka match and the Gasquet-Ferrer match, here are two points to consider:
1. When Ferrer beat Gasquet in straight sets last year, the matched clocked in at 3 hours. That wasn’t mentioned. Nor the fact that Gasquet was up a break in the first (and I believe second) set. The signs were always there.
2. Tomas Berdych has never been ranked higher, he is playing superb tennis. Wawrinka has taken out Stepanek, Karlovic, Baghdatis, Berydch. They are all quality players. Clearly it is he who was building up his form!