Valencia R2 previews and picks: Ferrer vs. Benneteau, Isner vs. Chardy

David Ferrer will continue his Valencia campaign on Thursday against Julien Benneteau. John Isner and Jeremy Chardy are also bidding for a spot in the quarterfinals.

(1) David Ferrer vs. Julien Benneteau

Ferrer and Benneteau will be facing each other for the ninth time in their careers when they clash in round two of the Valencia Open on Thursday. The head-to-head series is even at 4-4, but Benneteau has won three of their of four hard-court encounters–including two indoors. Ferrer’s lone hard-court victory came amidst slower conditions last year in Miami via a 7-6(5), 6-4 third-round decision. They last squared off one season ago in Kuala Lumpur, where Benneteau cruised 6-4, 6-1.

The Frenchman, still seeking his first ATP title after nine runner-up finishes, reached the Kuala Lumpur final last month but fell in the first round of events in Beijing and Shanghai. He is 27-23 for his 2013 campaign after crushing Feliciano Lopez 6-3, 6-1 on Tuesday. Ferrer opened with a 6-3, 6-2 rout of Gael Monfils on Wednesday. The third-ranked Spaniard is 53-19 for the season but only 13-7 since Wimbledon. This should be a good opportunity for Benneteau based on his opponent’s lackluster form and his past hard-court success in this matchup.

Pick: Benneteau in 3

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Jeremy Chardy vs. (4) John Isner

Isner and Chardy will be squaring off for just the second time in their careers on Thursday. Their only previous encounter ended in retirement, with Isner calling it quits trailing 6-7(1), 6-3, 4-1 at the 2009 Cincinnati Masters. The 6’10” American is far less comfortable away from the United States, but he managed to score an impressive 7-6(4), 7-6(1) win over Ernests Gulbis in his Valencia opener on Wednesday. Isner, ranked 14th in the world, is 38-22 for the season and a respectable 4-2 since the U.S. Open.

Chardy also had a recent tiebreaker battle against Gulbis, losing 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(3) in the Stockholm first round. The 36th-ranked Frenchman edged Florian Mayer 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 on Wednesday to put his fall-swing record at 3-4 and his overall 2013 mark at 21-23. Chardy has endured some bad losses of late and he has no particularly stellar results since beating Feliciano Lopez and Kei Nishikori on the clay courts of Rome back in May. This will be competitive because Isner is almost never dominant on foreign soil, but the No. 4 seed should advance as long as he has even a decent serving day.

Pick: Isner in 3

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