World Four Finals preview and pick: Berdych vs. Wawrinka

Stanislas Wawrinka is making his World Tour Finals debut on Monday. Up first for the Swiss in Group A round-robin action is Tomas Berdych.

Tomas Berdych and Stanislas Wawrinka will be squaring off for the 13th time in their careers and for the fourth time this season when they collide during round-robin play at the World Tour Finals on Monday afternoon.

Wawrinka leads the head-to-head series 7-5, including 2-1 this year. They have split their eight hard-court encounters at four wins apiece. Interestingly, Berdych is 4-0 against Wawrinka indoors while all four of Wawrinka’s hard-court wins have come outdoors. They most recently faced each other in the fourth round of the U.S. Open, with Wawrinka prevailing 3-6, 6-1, 7-6(6), 6-2.

The Swiss is wrapping up the best season of his career, even challenging Roger Federer for the top ranking in their country. Wawrinka owns a 49-21 record for 2013, which includes a quarterfinal performance at Roland Garros, a semifinal showing at the U.S. Open, a runner-up finish in Madrid, and one title in Oeiras. The world No. 8 is not at his very best right now, but he at least reached the quarters at both of the fall Masters events in Shanghai and Paris. Last week, Wawrinka beat Feliciano Lopez and Nicolas Almagro before succumbing to Novak Djokovic in two routine sets.

Berdych’s year has been similar, although with not quite as much fanfare (Wawrinka endured two epic five-set Grand Slam losses to Djokovic). The world No. 7, a quarterfinalist at the Australian Open and Wimbledon and a semifinalist in Indian Wells, Madrid, Rome, and Cincinnati, is still in search of his first 2013 title. He is coming off a Paris event that saw him take out Pablo Andujar and Milos Raonic before going down to David Ferrer.

Berdych is making his fourth appearance in London, all in succession dating back to 2009. He has advanced out of round-robin play once, losing to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the 2011 semifinals. Wawrinka, on the other hand, is in the year-end championship for the first time. Berdych’s relative experience and his past history against Wawrinka indoors bode well for the Czech’s chances in this one.

Pick: Berdych in 3

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