Miami Open
Men’s First Round
Thomas Berdych over Bernie Tomic
This one is a slamdunk. Berdych is making a nice comeback and recovery from injury and surgery, and although he’s not back to his peak, he’s close enough that he should be able to take out Tomic, the Aussie who is past his prime at 26. Tomic’s ground strokes have been reduced to half-speed, and aren’t forceful enough to give the 89th ranked Berdych trouble. As the Czech continues his climb back up the rankings ladder, he should push his record to 6-0 against Tomic.
Taylor Fritz over Max Marterer
Fritz, the 21-year-old American from Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., has been spotty this year. He has shown flashes of brilliance and patches of desultory play. I was really surprised when he went down easily to Stevie Johnson in Delray Beach, but hopefully for Fritz that was a learning experience playing against an older, more experienced compatriot who was ranked above him. If Fritz has his head about him he will take out the 6’3” German. The only thing that could disturb the Californian is Marterer’s lefty serve, which could take the American off the court. But I’m guessing that Fritz has prepared for that.
Feliciano Lopez over Benoit Paire
Feliciano Lopez, at 37, is past his best days as a tennis player. Still, the Spanish lefty brings enough game into this match to take out Paire, the 6’5” Frenchman. I say this because I find Paire to be an enigma. He’s tall, has a good serve, covers the court reasonably well, and recently has lost twice as much recently as he wins. He’s not that old yet, at 25, to absolutely collapse, but we’re seeing his game and his career begin to circle the drain. When things get tough, if they do, I expect Paire to self-destruct and leave Lopez with the win.
Pierre-Hugues Herbert over Filip Krajinovic
This is an interesting match and could go either way. Herbert is a genius on the doubles court, and I keep expecting him to dominate lesser opponents in singles, but it just doesn’t happen. Maybe he’s much more comfortable covering just half of the court. Yet he has a really good serve and a very serviceable volley, and he returns serve well, so the hope still lives. Krajinovic, ranked only 103, will present a challenge in this match. I think he’s played some of the best tennis of his career this year, and his 9-4 record echoes that sentiment. These guys haven’t played since Herbert won their only meeting in 2010, so their history has no bearing on this match. Something tells me that it’s Herbert’s time.
Damir Dzumhur over Chris Eubanks
This match will be intriguing simply from the standpoint of the optics presented. Dzumhur is a 26-year-old from Sarajevo and stands just 5’9”. Eubanks is a 22-year-old ex-college player from Atlanta, who can easily dunk at 6’7”. But Eubanks is not ready for prime time yet. He’s really raw, yet serves well enough to be competitive in most matches. If he is to win here, he’ll have to win two tiebreakers, as his ground game is lacking. Dzumhur is known to be a dogged competitor and brings enough professional experience into this match that I expect him to move on.