A quarterfinal spot will be at stake when John Isner tries to remain perfect in Winston-Salem with Borna Coric on the other side of the net on Wednesday. Roberto Bautista Agut and Marcos Baghdatis are also in third-round action.
(3) John Isner vs. (14) Borna Coric
Isner and Coric will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers when they clash in round three of the Winston-Salem Open on Wednesday night. Their only previous meeting came last summer in a Davis Cup rubber on the hard courts of Portland, where Isner benefited from playing at home in the United States and dominated 6-4, 6-4, 6-3. This setting favors the 6’10” American to an even greater extent, as he is a perfect 13-0 lifetime in Winston-Salem with two titles. Coming off recent triumphs in Newport and Atlanta plus a semifinal showing last week in Cincinnati, Isner opened with a 2-6, 7-6(5), 6-3 victory over Andrey Kuznetsov on Tuesday.
Coric also earned an opening-round bye as the No. 14 seed before overcoming Donald Young 4-6, 6-4, 6-2. The 20-year-old Croat registers at 62nd in the rankings and is a mediocre 16-18 for his 2017 campaign. He is just 2-5 in his last seven matches dating back to the Roland Garros second round. Despite those numbers and Isner’s impressive form, this is actually a good opportunity for Coric. Isner said after beating Kuznetsov that he was happy to be in Winston-Salem instead of New York right now, but that may not tell the real story. The world No. 14 did not have much energy and he could use some rest prior to the U.S. Open having already played a ton of matches this summer. Coric should be able to use his defense to get a lot of balls back in play, thus sapping whatever his opponent has left in the tank.
Pick: Coric in 3
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(1) Roberto Bautista Agut vs. Marcos Baghdatis
Bautista Agut was the No. 2 seed last year in Winston-Salem and played his way into the final before losing a tough three-set battle against fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta. The world No. 15’s third career appearance at this tournament is off to a solid start, as he took care of Dusan Lajovic 6-4, 6-3 on Tuesday. Bautista Agut is now a stellar 35-15 this season and recently advanced to the Montreal quarterfinals (lost to eventual runner-up Roger Federer).
Up next for the top seed is a second career contest against Baghdatis. The head-to-head series is tied up at one win apiece, with Baghdatis cruising 7-5, 6-0 last year in Dubai and Bautista Agut prevailing 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 at the same stage of this same Winston-Salem event. Baghdatis has already pocketed two victories, defeating both Ricardas Berankis and Jiri Vesely in straight sets. The 32-year-old Cypriot is in decent enough form right now, but the always rock-solid Bautista Agut should mostly have the edge from the back of the court in terms of consistency and also forehand firepower.
Pick: Bautista Agut in 2
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Isner in two RBA in three
Coric in 3 and Bautista in 2.
Isner in two ,BA in three.
Experts, I like Ricky’s pick of Pick of Coric in 3. The logical analysis is correct also.
Why Coric?
1) Isner is tiring from playing 2 many matches.
2) Isner is not a good returner
3) His serve is also not impeccable! Ask Dimi how to break Isner’s serve!Or ask Kuznetsov how he broke Isner in the 1st set!lol
4) Coric’s win over a in-form Donald Young (is more credit worthy than Isner’s who struggled to beat a very inconsistent and may be out of form A.Kuznetsov. Just check the score line and the stats behind it. They tell it all) shows Coric is rounding into a good form.
Going with over as Isner will fight and win one set(probably the 1st with crowd support) before he tanks/gases in the 2nd and 3rd set! But Luv you Isner for the many wins you gave us the last 1+ month!
RBA to win 2 or 3. RBA ML and -1,-2
WARNING-Tico,pico,chico etc., do own research before betting. The info(picks/analysis) here is just some raw material. Add your own research on top of it and make it into a finished product and just own it. Never blame others for your final decision and for what you do with your money!lol
Big Dawg in 2; RBA in 3
Scoot, your Big Dawg lost in 2 instead of winning in 2. And RBA won in 2.
Are you Ricky Dimon’s brother or relative, having the same last name as our Ricky?
Nice win for Coric. Isner was fried yesterday, so sad he lost, but happy he’ll get the rest he needs before the Open. Also heard he had some back issues, hope those get fixed.
Glad I was wrong. Isner NEEDS the rest before the Open. I thought it was a bad move of him to play this week but picked him to win simply because it’s winsyk Salem and he would have an excuse to suck at the Open LOL. Now you can’t play like crap at the Open John!! Pulling for you there dude!!
Winston salem*