The big shock on the ATP side was the early exit of Roger Federer from Rome. This all came after Federer won a 6-1 opening set. However, he would eventually succumb to a surprise defeat at the hands of Jeremy Chardy, 1-6 6-3 7-6(6). The Frenchman even saved a match point with a RIDICULOUS forehand, which you can watch below. It was a surprise, but I am sure Federer’s mind is elsewhere right now. One thing for sure, he will fully rested for Roland Garros. The mens results continue to baffle me. There are some third round matches that are really difficult to call…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrM-agW7is4
1. Milos Raonic v Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga
2014 has been a pretty miserable year so far for Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Apart from Monte-Carlo where he was respectable in reached the quarter-finals, Tsonga has failed to showcase his best tennis and has looked short of both motivation and confidence. In Madrid, he fell early in straight sets to Santiago Giraldo. In Rome, however, he has scored two very good wins. In the first round, he beat Alexandr Dolgopolov, 6-3 7-6(5). It was a fantastic match, full of exciting tennis. Dolgopolov was returning like a demon at the end of the second set. Tsonga played a very smart tiebreak to secure the match in two sets. He brought some of that tiebreak love to his second round match as he needed two of them to beat Kevin Anderson, 7-6(14) 7-6(5).
Next up for Tsonga is Milos Raonic. The Canadian has been posting steady, yet unspectacular results on the clay. In the first round of Rome he defeated Simone Bolelli, 6-3 7-6(5). Tsonga has the upper hand in the head-to-head with two victories; however both went the distance including that epic match at the Olympics, which Tsonga won 25-23 in the third set. The loss of Federer from this section has created a beautiful opening for the pair. Personally, I’d love to see Tsonga snap it up…
Prediction: Tsonga d. Raonic in 3 sets
2. David Ferrer v Ernests Gulbis
After playing in the quarter-finals of Madrid, David Ferrer and Ernests Gulbis will play in back-to-back weeks. Ferrer absolutely crushed Mikhail Kukushkin, 6-1 6-2. Gulbis had a smooth draw, but nearly crumbled today. After losing the first set to Stephane Robert, rather surprisingly, Gulbis kept it together and pulled through in three sets, 6-7(1) 6-4 6-3. Last week in Madrid, Ferrer played a stunning match to defeat Gulbis, 7-6(3) 6-3. Gulbis had his chances and was up a break in the second set. In my original predictions, I went for Gulbis to reach the semi-finals. I’m really not sure now after Ferrer’s opening round win and a day of rest. He played some very lengthy matches in Madrid. Ferrer’s the favourite for sure. After some of the crazy results in the mens draw, I’ll continue to harness my inner crazy.
Prediction: Gulbis d. Ferrer in 2 tight sets
ATP Rome 3rd Round Predictions
Rafael Nadal d. Mikhail Youzhny in 2 sets
Andy Murray d. Jurgen Melzer in 3 sets
Stanislas Wawrinka d. Tommy Haas in 2 tight sets
Grigor Dimitrov d. Tomas Berdych in 3 sets
Jeremy Chardy d. Ivan Dodig in 3 sets
Novak Djokovic d. Philipp Kohlschreiber in 2 tight sets
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