ATP Wimbledon – Men’s Monday Preview

Feliciano Lopez vs. Michael Berrer

The forecast shows cloudy with occasional light rain but the Championships Wimbledon will be open today and one of the first round encounters will be a left handed battle.

Both had some action on grass, Berrer lost in second round in both tournaments so far, Queens and s-Hertogenbosch while Lopez lost in second round in Queens. But overall the Spaniard showed a better form while the German register his first two wins on grass since 2007.

Also Berrer’s only wins at Wimbledon is back in 2007 against Montanes. Both are good net rushers with a plus for Lopez while Berrer stays a little bit better from the back of the court, also the Spaniard has the better serve and serves more consistently during the match.

Pablo Andujar vs. Ryan Sweeting

The young American, Ryan Sweeting, had nothing on this surface to be such favorite against Spaniard Pablo Andujar. He had a couple of wins in qualifications for Wimbledon but that doesn’t justify the odds. Also, the winner will meet Nadal in second round.

The Spaniard has three matches in his career on grass and the most recent one is back in 2009. Still the American showed some progress this year even on an unknown surface like clay, he has a solid serve and resist well from the back of the court, Andujar will have the edge on this encounter if he will be able to serve 5 sets.

Grega Zemlja vs. Lukas Lacko

Hard to read anything in Zemla’s qualification stage as after he beat Brown and Julio Silva he lost to De Voest but he probably know that he will be a lucky loser. He had the same scenarios as Lacko, who is a qualifier, but he waited two days before his match because of the rain. The Slovak won against Alcaide, Wolmarans and Soeda. Neither has a solid record on the surface but overall Lacko played more on grass, even that Zemlja can be a tricky player in a given day, he can catch a solid serving day with a lot of action at the net he still is limited on the surface, he tends to go too much on opponent’s backhand while Lacko has a solid backhand wing.

Zemlja has lost to solid baseliners like Montanes, Niland or Cox while Lacko has wins over Baghdatis, Chardy, Sweeting or Chiudinelli on the surface and overall he looks solid from the back of the court having a better defense, Zemlja needs to serve a high percentage of first serve in to have an impact here.

Mardy Fish vs. Marcel Granollers

Standing on Nr.9 spot in the rankings, the American Mardy Fish wasn’t interested to defend his final played in Queens last year and is coming in Wimbledon without match practice on the surface. He has some points to defend on grass as even that he lost in second round last year he won in Newport. Lucky for him neither Granollers showed some interest on grass, he also stopped in second round after he beat Gil.

Fish has the better serve and even that he is without match practice on the surface he trained in the last couple of days in London, due to his powerful serve he has the upper hand, the Spaniard has lost easily to Soderling, Querrey or Almagro and even that he has the game to push one set in a tie-break.

Fabio Fognini vs. Milos Raonic

Italian Fabio Fognini had registered one of his best performances on grass last year when he reached third round after he beat Verdasco and Russell. But he is without match practice and will oppose one of the best serves on tour, while the Canadian is coming after a quarter-finals in Halle, most of all indoors conditions, where he had a solid impact during his serve.

The Italian is an unknown mark for bettors as he is yet to play an official match since Roland Garros but he has the game to take this one. He has a good retrieving skills and solid compact display from the back of the court, he can move the Canadian from side to side and force him into errors but he needs to play long as any short ball will be point for Raonic. Hard to go against Raonic in a 5 sets match.

Philipp Kohlschreiber vs. Denis Istomin

Denis Istomin continued his poor year with low performance on court in Queens and Eastbourne. He missed a lot on serve, if his serve will not enter he will be under big pressure as he makes a lot of errors on court.

His last win in circuit came back in March and all will depend by his serve, but is hard to see him serving out in five sets. The German won the title in Halle and showed great consistency on serve, even that he withdraw in Eastbourne was more a resting withdrawal. A lot of Istomin’s game is based on serve, if that will enter he will have the upper hand but he showed little fight on grass, he showed some grueling tennis only when his serve entered. The German has good retrieving skills and the surface is still on slower side.

Thomaz Bellucci vs. Rainer Schuettler

Bellucci and coach Larri Passos are in London since last Monday.

"This week, as has happened today, we had to train a few times in the indoor court in the light rain. But the preparation is good. We train some moves that happen in this type of court, grass, and some specific grounds, and play some sets to not missing a beat", said the Brazilian. The German made second round in Eastbourne and his best performance here is back in 2008 when he reached the semi-finals.

Bellucci reached the third round in Queens and despite that the German has a bette grass court game still his physical game is a question marck, the match can be interrupt by rain and the Brazilian can found better the rhythm.

Donald Young vs. Alex Bogomolov

Two Americans here and a difficult task. If Bogomolav has a better consisted year reaching the Top 100, then Young showed some consistency lately on grass qualifying for Eastbourne. Also Bogomolov reached the quarter-finals in s-Hertogenbosch but he benefit by a kind draw.

Bogomolov depends too much by serve and forehand on this surface, if he misses on these wings then his game fells apart while still Young has the better grass game, he has a better movement on court, huge looping forehand, crisp volleys at the net. He also isn’t without weapons in long rallies and also won the the Junior Wimbledon title back in 2007, he creates good angles on forehand wing while still Bogomolov misses a lot on this wings, a game that can go either way in some moments.

Gilles Muller vs. Tommy Haas

Tommy Haas was spotted hitting with Roger Federer in All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London. The German has no expectation and after this season will decide if he will quit tennis or will continue, he says that he feel physical well but is hard to back him with confidence on a tricky surface and conditions like this.

Muller won the Nottingham 1 Challenger while he had a more precautious withdrawal in Nottingham 2. Muller isn’t a grass court player, his last win here is back in 2007. Not the most decisive match, Muller has the serve on his side to win a lot of free points and force tie-breaks where he will have the upper hand while Haas is still in unknown conditions.

Rafael Nadal vs. Michael Russell

The match will be played even that will rain as the court has a retractable roof. The Spaniard trained with Lopez here and he looked in good physical conditions, better then his composure in Queens where he lost to Tsonga.

Hard to see Russell to make an impact here, he can only make things interesting, Nadal hasn’t the most kindest draw and he needs a quick win and with only 2 wins on grass in the last eight years the American is a good first round opponent. The American hasn’t a powerful serve while from the back of the court Nadal has the upper hand.  

Frederico Gil vs. Dudi Sela

Since April when he was outside Top 100, the Israeli Dudi Sela has a wining strike of 15 matches wining 3 Challengers with the last one on grass. He beat in Nottingham Tomic and Chardy showing a lot of confidence on court and with his serve clicking well on the surface. The Israeli is a fast moving baseliner with good retrieving skills, he can use the opponents pace to counter-punch and he can hold his ground in long rallies but also can finish the points quickly.

Gil instead is yet to win a match since April and his grass record is poor, he has only three wins when he managed to qualify back in 2008 at Wimbledon. Sela is in good form and he will miss this one in 3 sets only if he will have some downs in the match.    

Richard Gasquet vs. Santiago Giraldo

Maybe not of the easiest first rounds for the Frenchman. The Columbian is coming after a quarter-final appearance in s-Hertogenbosch losing to eventual champion, Tursunov. He has a powerful serve to win free points and hit with a lot of power from the back of the court but we question his movement on court especially against a player who opens well the court. The Frenchman didn’t played on grass recently and that might be the only setback for him, he has the better grass court with his good backhand slice which will stay low and will force Giraldo to hit from an uncomfortable point, Gasquet hasn’t points to defend and even that he isn’t without match practice.

Potito Starace vs. Stanislas Wawrinka

The Swiss hadn’t the best start on grass losing in the first round in Queens against Ward. But playing in a Grand Slam of five sets the motivation will be other and if he will have some lucks on game he has enough time to settle them. He has a good opening round, against Italian Potito Starace who is on his least favorite surface and who plays only in Wimbledon being 1/8 on grass.

The Swiss has the better game for grass and will exploit the poor Italian movement on the surface.

Gael Monfils vs. Matthias Bachinger

Coming from a semi-final in Halle, the Frenchman Gael Monfils was pleased with his game on grass. Bachinger also played consistently but on a lower circuit, he reached the final in Nottingham Challenger on his first apparition on the surface.

The German still isn’t on his best surface, he has a solid serve but is bother by good retrievers, he is prone to errors if he is forced to play quickly, his backhand is more to keep him in rallies as he finish the points with the forehand. He has a solid serve and his baseline display can help him to win some games here but Monfils has the better serve and will win more free points behind that and from the back of the court the Frenchman has the upper hand.

Ruben Bemelmans vs. Julien Benneteau

Belgian Ruben Bemelmans managed to qualify in Wimbledon for the first time. He beat Witten, Sugita and Olaso but wasn’t easy as against Sugita saved two match points. His serve escaped him through some tricky moments against the Japanese.

He will meet Benneteau who is coming after a quarter-final in Eastbourne and who has a fourth round to defend from last year but the Frenchman is only 5/8 in Wimbledon losing four times in first round from seven attempts.

The Belgian has a powerful serve and he likes to play on grass as he makes a better impact behind the serve and also helps him to charge the net more. He is bother by long and deep balls and became impatient in long rallies but he isn’t without weapons in a baseline battle. Benneteau has the experience on his side and is more consistent on court but as long the Belgian will play his usual aggressive tennis he will have the upper hand but is hard to see him keep a high level of tennis.

Igor Kunitsyn vs. Igor Sijsling      

Dutch tennis player Igor Sijsling is through to Wimbledon after beating Belgium's David Goffin in the third and final qualifying round. Wimbledon will be Sijsling's first grand slam tournament. He beat Klizan and Navarro also in his road for the main draw and his serve was his main weapon in qualifications.

"I was a bit emotional. Wimbledon is the tournament that I dreamed as a boy. In those dreams came for no other grand slams. I feel good and am eagerly", said the Dutchman.

He is used with the conditions here and he found his rhythm on serve, which is his main weapon as he has more sting on grass, he advance to the net for volleys but also can remain solid from the back of the court.

The Russian is coming after a semi-final appearance in Eastbourne but he had some luck with the draw. Prior to that was 8/17 on grass with two wins in Wimbledon, back in 2006 and 2009 when Dimitrov withdrew. The Russian is a defensive baseliner but can take his chances in offensive as he has an explosive forehand, good retrieving skill, powerful ground strokes and has the experience on his side but Sijsling is coming with a lot of morale and he puts a lot of fight on court, he will have the upper hand on tie-breaks.

Martin Fischer vs. Simone Bolelli

Both came from qualification stages but if Bolelli preferred not to put fight on court as he knew that he will enter as a lucky loser, then the Austrian defeated Janowicz in a hard battle of five sets. Last year also qualified and he gave a real threat to Berdych in second round. He is a versatile player with a good slice on backhand wing, strong serve a useful volleyer.

Fischer’s game is best suited to faster surfaces, because the ball doesn't bounce high, and also feels very comfortable on the grass with his footwork.

The Italian has some success on grass, back in 2008 he reached third round here, he has a good game for grass too but Fischer is the kind of player who doesn’t give free points and will enter with some morale after he qualified against tricky Janowicz.

Tobias Kamke vs. Blaz Kavcic

It will be the third meeting between them and the first two went on Kavcic side, both were played on clay. Kavcic is without win on the surface and he managed to lose even to Haider-Maurer in s-Hertogenbosch. Instead, Kamke has a third round to defend from last year when he surprised Garcia-Lopez and Seppi.

The German showed solid tennis in Halle losing to Raonic, was demoralize by the powerful serve of the Canadian but he played well.

Both players have clean shots from both wings and can play some aggressive tennis during the match, both have a solid serve and both are quick baseliners with the German being more instinctive player from the baseline, in both meetings so far Kamke failed to be decisive on serve but being on grass where he had a great run last year.

Edouard Roger-Vasselin vs. Gilles Simon

Despite being considered a clay court specialist, the Frenchman Roger-Vasselin has the best performance in a Grand Slam here, in Wimbledon back in 2007 when he reached third round.

Since then only once failed to be in the main draw. He qualified beating Veic, Pospisil and Gicquel Roger-Vasselin isn’t the best retriever but is a good baseliner with good shots from both wings and can resist well in long rallies, he will not be outplayed as Simon can generate and hasn’t the power to hit through his defense and a lot of long rallies are expected. Roger-Vasselin moves well on grass and Simon withdrew with back problem in Queens. Simon is favorite to take this one but we don’t see an easy match.

Juan Ignacio Chela vs. Marinko Matosevic

The Argentine is coming after a solid performance at Roland Garros where he reached the quarter-finals but he showed no interest on grass and overall has limited success on the surface, he is 3/9 on grass with the last win back in 2007 and since then he has only one match played, last year at Wimbledon losing to Dent.

Matosevic played on grass this year as he reached the quarter-finals in Nottingham and was close to qualify for Queens while here past by Flock, Rufin and Guccione to advance in the main draw.

The Aussie relies on his serve, if that will enter he can be a tricky player as he advance a lot to the net while from the back of the court he hits with a lot of power.

Hard to back Chela here even that the odds are tempting as the Argentine is on his least favorite surface but in a tussle from the back of the court he has the upper hand, the Aussie will need to force 5 sets to have the upper hand.

Filippo Volandri vs. Tomas Berdych

Italian Filippo Volandri managed his second win on grass in his career beating Mello in s-Hertogenbosch. He isn’t on his best surface and despite that he is a compact baseliner and resist well in long rallies he hasn’t a real weapon to trouble the Czech here.

Berdych has a lots of points to defend here and he needs to stay little on court especially in first rounds.

Robin Haase vs. Pere Riba

Robin Haase didn’t impressed too much on the surface but he has the game to be dangerous, he gave a real test to Nadal last year and if he hadn’t back problem then the outcome could be different.

He has the serve to make an impact and win free points and advance a lot to the net to finish the points quickly. He tends to lose to powerful servers on this surface but Riba has only four matches on the surface. He gave a solid test to Dodig in Halle and if the points will last longer then Riba will have the upper hand but the Dutchman has a better grass game and he will flatter in 3 sets only if he will suffer a big letdown.

Sergey Stakhovsky vs. Daniel Cox

The Ukrainian is on his first win at Wimbledon in his third attempt. Last year he withdraw in first round against Querrey after he won in s-Hertogebosch while this year lost both two matches to Hernych and Schuettler showing little interest on court and serving poor. But he has a beatable opponent, despite being a local player, and the winner will play with Murray in the next round.

Cox trains in Wimbledon for a couple of days with Ward and Garcia-Lopez but he is still young and he didn’t impress too much recently. The match stays on Ukrainian’s racquet but neither him impressed and has some downs on his game. Still the Britt has the game to force a tie-break.

Ivan Ljubicic vs. Marin Cilic

Interesting meeting. Both are coming for Queens where Ljubicic lost in second round while Cilic withdrew in quarter-finals with ankle injury. The Croat is in poor form and lucks matches on the surface, he plays without confidence in his game and that showed at French Open against Ramirez-Hidaldo where he failed to put some fight and was off on serve. Last success for Ljubicic in Wimbledon is back in 2007 and despite that he won in s-Hertogenbosch he never excelled on grass.

Both are tall with a powerful serve, a plus for Ljubicic here, but if Ljubicic is coming more to the net then Cilic likes to dictate from the back of the court even that he has good hands at the net. In a 5 set match Cilic is favorite, still Cilic showed little on court recently.

Ivo Karlovic vs. Janko Tipsarevic

Janko Tipsarevic is still listed to play with Ivo Karlovic in first rounds but the Serb it might withdraw. In Eastbourne final he stretched too much by a ball being catches on the wrong foot and he complained by thigh pain. He managed to lose another final and he was nervous on court but he looked good on serve and from the back the court. Also, they met in Delray Beach this year and the Serb won in two tie-breaks.

The Croat has the serve on his side to win cheap points and will charge the net to finish up quickly, the Serb once more needs to be accurate on his own serve and keep his focus but it will be interesting how he will play after his strange final in Eastbourne.

Jaroslav Pospisil vs. Victor Hanescu

Romanian Victor Hanescu will return to Wimbledon after his strange episode with Brands last year when he withdrew in third round claiming that he was swear from the crowd. He reached third round in his last two stops in Wimbledon and he made contact with the surface in s-Hertogenbosch.
Pospisil played in Queens but he is on an unknown surface. He likes long rallies and relies on opponent errors, good retriever, quick around the court, a good defensive baseliner but Hanescu has a powerful serve and stays solid from the back of the court and even that tie-breaks will be seen still the Romanian has the upper hand.

Juan Martin Del Potro vs. Flavio Cipolla

Managing to make the difference in a few important moments, the Italian Flavio Cipolla qualified for the main draw with a win over Bautista-Agut. He will participate for the first time in the main draw in Wimbledon. He also beat Lemke and De La Nava to access on the main draw.

The Italian played on the surface but mostly trying to qualify, he is a good counter puncher and despite that he doesn’t have a real weapon to trouble the Argentine he still can be very tricky, if he will exploit the angles and the side to side poor movements of Del Potro can stay close to the Argentine who has the edge on serve and power but is hard to see any surprise here.

Olivier Rochus vs. Kenny De Schepper

De Schepper will play on this occasion his first Grand Slam match and even his first game in a ATP tournament. He beat Kellner, Ebden and Bolelli to advance in the main draw and even that the Italian might not pushed too much still was the Frenchman who putted a lot of fight on court.

The left hander Frenchman is imposed by the service and is compared with American John Isner or Ivo Karlovic. If his serve will enter he will earn free points and will force tie-breaks, like he did against Bolelli wining two of them from three, where anything can happen. He has a good variety on his serving side and advance to the net a lot to finish the points with volleys but he isn’t without chances from the back of the court.

Rochus has a good slice on backhand wing and will force De Schepper to bend his knee to hit well, he came after a quarter-final appearance in Eastbourne but he struggled to beat Berlocq needing two tie-breaks. His last success at Wimbledon is back in 2008, he has more variety in his game to trouble the inexperienced Frenchman.

Arnaud Clement vs. Lukasz Kubot

Veteran Arnaud Clement needed a WC invitation for the main draw. He qualified for s-Hertogenbosch and Queens and showed a good form losing to Cilic and Baghdatis. But when his serve let him then his game fell apart and also in a five set match the physical problem will be a question mark. He plays well on grass but those days are over.

He will meet qualifier Kubot who beat Ciric, Mesaros and Gensse and that mainly due to his serve as still on court failed to impress. Kubot has the serve to win free points if his game on court will suffer while Clement hasn’t the same comfort on serve, the Frenchman needs to finish the match in three sets to have a chance as in a 5 set match the Polish will have the upper hand.

Andy Murray vs. Daniel Gimeno-Traver

Local favorite, Andy Murray will start against Spaniard Daniel Gimeno-Traver. Even that he is considered a clay court specialist, the Spaniard has two wins on grass, he beat Dent here back in 2009 and managed to beat a low confident Golubev in Halle this year.

He is a defensive player who likes to force long rallies and base on opponent’s errors but the Britt will need a comfortable win to give him a boost of morale, especially after he won in Queens, he is also a solid baseliner and he will have the upper hand from the back of the court.

Andreas Beck vs. Andy Roddick

American Andy Roddick showed a good form and desire to play in Queens where he reached the semi-final, losing to eventual champion Andy Murray. When his serve enters things are easily for him but when he fails behind that he is in trouble. He still has the upper hand in tie-breaks. He will meet German Andreas Beck for the first time.

The left hander player is a qualifier here beating Bubka, Baker and Zopp to enter for the second time in the main draw in Wimbledon. Beck is a big-hitting lefty who plays well on grass mainly because he has more impact with his powerful game, he has three quarter-finals in Halle while here reached second round last year.

The German tends to lose against players that had a suitable game for grass like Muller, Petzschner, Blake, Kohlschreiber, but has the game to force tie-breaks here.

Radek Stepanek vs. Fernando Verdasco

Spaniard Fernando Verdasco reached the quarter-finals in Queens but he lost easily to Roddick spreading a lot of balls outside and was poor on serve, that continued in his exhibition match in Boodles against Ferrer.

The Czech reached third round in Queens and quarter-finals in Eastbourne and lost to Nishikori being a little bit absent on serve. The conditions will be on slow side as the weather will be low and the ball heavier, the Czech has only one exit in first round in Wimbledon, back in 2008 he lost to Mathieu while the Spaniard has two, including the one from last year.

Tricky match as the Czech is a five set match might suffer in physical compartment while is hard to back Verdasco confidently showing little fight and low confidence on court.