ATP Montreal – Tuesday Preview

Andy Murray vs. Kevin Anderson

Andy Murray begins his quest for a third straight Montreal Masters title on Tuesday against Kevin Anderson.

Murray has produced some of his best ever tennis at the Canadian Masters, winning it for the first time in 2009 with a thrilling three set final victory over Juan Martin Del Potro and then defeating Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer back-to-back to defend his title last year. It cemented Murray's position as one of the premier players to beat on hard courts. He will be feared by all this week, even the inform Novak Djokovic but his first real test could come in the third round against Stanislas Wawrinka, the man who ended his US Open dreams last year.

First up is the formidable figure of South Africa's Kevin Anderson. However despite standing at 6'8 Anderson was not able to hurt Murray with his serve when they met at last year's Australian Open. Murray dealt with everything Anderson had to throw at him fairly easily and it ended up being a pretty routine straight sets win.

Anderson claimed afterwards that he had struggled with fatigue in the heat and that could be a slight factor again with this match scheduled during the day session. He has not had particularly good results in the States so far this summer, losing early in Altanta and Los Angeles and Murray should be able to outmanoeuvre him fairly comfortably.

Richard Gasquet vs Florian Mayer

Richard Gasquet is in action against Florian Mayer in the first round of the Rogers Cup on Tuesday.

The enigmatic Gasquet remains as unpredictable as ever but the Frenchman is back up to the verge of the top ten after some solid results over the past few months. It took Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray to stop him in the fourth round of the past two slams and Gasquet looks back to where his talent belongs, contending with the very best.

However he has rarely made hay during this part of the season. Gasquet has sometimes struggled in the oppressive temperatures and humidity and the medium paced hard courts do not particularly suit his cavalier style of play.

Last year he crashed out in the opening round of the Rogers Cup to Sergiy Stakhovsky, not the sort of player you would usually expect to trouble Gasquet.

Today Florian Mayer will be hoping to banish memories of a devastating Davis Cup loss to the Frenchman last month. Mayer led his German side into action for their quarter-final against France with high hopes after one of his best years on the tour. He led Gasquet by two sets to love but was stunned as he hit back and went on to win in five.

Mayer may actually have a better chance on this surface as Gasquet loves the clay. Given the Frenchman has spent most of the month inactive since that clash, Mayer could be a decent bet for the upset here.

Novak Djokovic vs. Nikolay Davydenko

Novak Djokovic begins his quest to make another little piece of history when he takes on Nikolay Davydenko in the second round of the Montreal Masters.

Djokovic could become the first man ever to win five Masters 1000 titles in a season if he triumphs this week. The Serb has virtually swept the board so far, picking up Indian Wells, Miami, Rome and Madrid in an unprecedented display of dominance.

He last won the Rogers Cup in 2007, announcing himself as a genuine threat for the big titles by beating Andy Roddick, Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer back-to-back. It would be a fitting symbolism if he triumphs again this week, confirming his ascension to the top spot.

It will be interesting to see how determined Djokovic is this week. The big prize awaits in a few weeks at Flushing Meadows, will he be prepared to give it everything over the next week to the possible detriment of his chances in New York ?  The good news for Serbian fans is that Djokovic has been sounding hungry for success in his pre-tournament press conferences and his fitness is better than ever.

"I have recharged my batteries, and I am ready for the upcoming couple of months," he said. And he insisted that although he's now number one, nothing will change.

"I try not to change anything in particular, I've tried to keep the things very simple the way I have practiced and the way I have approached my tennis career in general up to the moment where I was No. 1," Djokovic explained.

Davydenko enjoyed a routine win over Italy's Flavio Cipolla yesterday and he will be hoping to roll back the years today. Djokovic leads 3-2 on the head-to-head but he definitely could have been given an easier opponent than the former world number three.

All of Djokovic's past wins over the Russian came at the ATP World Finals. It will be another hard fought baseline scrap but you really can't see Djokovic in his current mood going out early.

Philipp Kohlschreiber vs. Sergiy Stakhovsky

Germany’s Philipp Kohlschreiber and Sergiy Stakhovsky of the Ukraine are as close in ranking as it is possible to be. Kohlschreiber sits at No. 42 and Stakhovsky is one spot behind him at No. 43.

The two men have never met in an ATP match. Neither is having a particularly impressive year, but Kohlschreiber has had better success recently than has Stakhovsky. The Ukrainian hasn’t won more than 1 match at a time in the last 6 tournaments.

Gilles Simon vs. Philipp Petzschner

Gilles Simon and Philipp Petzschner will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers at the ATP level when they clash in the first round of the Rogers Cup on Tuesday. Simon won their only previous encounter 6-3, 6-4 on the clay courts of Stuttgart in 2009.

Injury-free and playing stellar tennis this season, Simon has to be favored to get the job done and advance to round two. The Frenchman is back up to No. 11 in the world, mainly thanks to his most recent appearance. He captured the Hamburg title three weeks ago, chalking up 500 points after scoring wins over opponents such as Gael Monfils, Mikhail Youzhny, and Nicolas Almagro. Seeded ninth in Montreal, Simon is 30-17 for his 2011 campaign.

Petzschner is a solid 19-16 for the season, but he slumping at the moment and struggling down at No. 80 in the world. The German reached the Halle final earlier this summer, but since then he has lost in the opening round of four consecutive events. Petzschner, though, may have gained some confidence from coming through qualifying over the weekend with wins over Nicholas Monroe and Greg Ouellette.

An upset is a slight possibility here, but only if Petzschner enjoys an incredible serving day. Simon is the far more consistent of the two competitors and he will be able to outfox his opponent if this becomes a baseline battle. Count on Simon advancing in two close sets.