ATP Gstaad – Monday Preview

Denis Istomin vs. Martin Fischer

Denis Istomin looks to break his losing streak against qualifier Martin Fischer in Gstaad. Looking at Istomin's track record, it's something of a surprise that he's opted to spend this month competing on clay. He's won just one out of seven matches on the surface this year and all his best results have come on hard courts. So you can only wonder what he's thinking by choosing to play Hamburg and Gstaad.

However it could prove to be a stroke of luck for Austrian qualifier Martin Fischer who is conceding a rankings difference of 123 places going into the match. Fischer came through qualifying with ease, not even coming close to dropping a set over the weekend. A solid player, Fischer has had some reasonable results in European challengers this year but nothing to suggest he may be ready to mount another charge towards the top 100. He made an early exit in French Open qualifying.

However if Istomin competed entirely on clay it is doubtful his results would be any better. In Hamburg he crashed out in the first round, outplayed then by qualifier Julian Reister in straight sets.

As far as first round draws go, Fischer could hardly have done any better.  

Andreas Haider-Maurer vs. Yann Marti

Local player Yann Marti managed to qualify for the second year in Gstaad main draw and will play also on his second match in ATP level.

He beat Espasandin and then surprised Przysiezny and Alcaide, wining a lot of points behind the serve even that he didn’t landed a high percentage of first serve in. He tends to go too much on serve, especially in key moments but overall a reliable serve, has good retrievings skills especially on second delivery where he is more aggressive and a regular player from the back of the court.

The Austrian came after a quarter-final appearance in Bastad, he has the better serve but he tends to go too much on the net and Yann can punish him there. The Austrian is favorite to advance further but Yann plays with a lot of confidence, he already beat 2 tough opponents with similar game as the Austrian.  

Igor Andreev vs. Mischa Zverev

Igor Andreev is in action against Mischa Zverev on day one in Gstaad.Andreev's career has seen better days. Once renowned for his colossal forehand, Andreev won three titles back in 2005 and was seen as the future of Russian tennis, the successor to Safin and Kafelnikov. However he has been usurped and left behind by Mikhail Youzhny as his own career has faded.

Currently ranked 77, Andreev has shown few signs he can get back in the top 50. Since Wimbledon he has played just a single event, losing to Argentine qualifier Diego Junqueira in Bastad.

However in Zverev he's up against a man also struggling for form The German, ranked 116, is currently on a four match losing streak and has won just two since the start of May.

Zverev did win the last match between these two but that was indoors in Shanghai last autumn, one of the German's more favoured surfaces.
It's a tough match to predict between 2 out of form players.

Alex Sadecky vs. Peter Luczak

Alex Sadecky looks to provide the Swiss crowds with a home winner on day one in Gstaad. This is a bit of a step up for Sadecky but the Swiss tennis ranks do not have much strength in depth so after Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka there is not too much else inside the top 200.

As a result, world number 404 Sadecky who spends most of his time on the futures circuit (the third tier of men's tennis) gets an annual shot at the big time in Gstaad. It's quite a contest compared to his last tournament outing, an event at the small British seaside town of Frinton where the first round losers cheque was no more than a couple of hundred dollars  However the left-hander more than rose to the occasion in Gstaad last year, scoring a win over compatriot Yann Marti and then pushing top seed Mikhail Youzhny close in the second round.

As first round draws go, Sadecky has done pretty well again and actually has a decent chance against Australian qualifier Luczak who's past his peak. Luczak came through qualifying without dropping a set and generally competes a level above Sadecky on the tour. However with the Swiss crowd behind him you never know.