The second round of matches in the ATP World Tour Finals concludes on Wednesday on what is another exciting looking day in the competition at the o2 Arena. Those with tickets well in advance would have expected to see Rafael Nadal on show but they will be disappointed sadly.
The world number one pulled out after his opening match defeat on Monday which will leave his compatriot Pablo Carreno-Busta to make his tournament debut. He will do so still with a chance of qualifying too.
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Afternoon Session
Marcelo Melo & Lukasz Kubot vs Bob Bryan & Mike Bryan
The winners of the two doubles matches on Monday meet first up on Wednesday with the world number one pairing of Marcelo Melo and Lukasz Kubot taking on the best doubles team the game has seen in recent times in the Bryan brothers.
The team which wins this match will take a significant step towards the knockout stages and depending on the evening result it could be that the winner here will be assured of a semi-final spot. I think the winners will be the Brazilian-Polish team who I was really impressed with in the first match but having backed them outright and respecting what the Bryans offer I’ll avoid a bet at a short looking price.
Grigor Dimitrov vs David Goffin
The two singles winners from Monday also meet in this afternoon session when Grigor Dimitrov takes on David Goffin. After Rafael Nadal pulled out both men go into this contest knowing that whoever wins it will be through to the semi-final with a match to spare so there is a decent incentive for them both.
Dimitrov leads their career record 3-1 and that might well be significant when all is said and done but Nadal led Goffin 2-0 and that made no difference. Nadal was not himself we have to admit but the fact Goffin believed he could win was the impressive thing for me in that match.
I have to say I enjoyed watching both on Wednesday. I liked their aggression and their style and if both play with the same intensity here then they could blend nicely for yet another three setter in a tournament full of three set matches. Three sets or a couple of close ones I fancy we’ll see over 22.5 games in this one.
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Evening Session
Jamie Murray & Bruno Soares vs Ivan Dodig & Marcel Granollers
The pressure cooker will be cranked up for the evening session as the two losing pairs collide in a match which they need to win to realistically keep their tournament alive. Depending on the result of the other match the losers might still be able to make it through but that opens up all sorts of mathematical necessities which nobody wants to go into.
Surprisingly this is the first time the two pairs have met although Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares have played against them both with other partners in the past so they will know what they are getting. I thought the Scottish-Brazilian pairing played alright in the first match but let it slip at key moments on two occasions.
On the flip side of that I do think the scoreline flattered Dodig and Granollers in their opening match. I thought Kubot and Melo were too good for them. Credit to Dodig and Granollers for clinging to them for as long as they did but I think they have to up their game to win here. I’m not sure they have it in them though so I’ll side with the fourth seeds in this one.
Pablo Carreno-Busta vs Dominic Thiem
Two men who will round off the day may be doing so with the thinking that they have had a bit of a bonus. Pablo Carreno-Busta has the bonus of being in the tournament which he wasn’t until Monday night while Dominic Thiem could have been facing Rafael Nadal but gets the infinitely easier task, on paper at least, of taking on Carreno-Busta.
Thiem leads their main tour head-to-head 4-0 although many of those matches have been tight but the issue arriving here is that neither man is in particularly good nick. I guess the match he played against Dimitrov on Monday will have Thiem better prepared but PCB is very much playing with the house money and can swing freely here. I’m tempted by the price on Carreno-Busta but he’s barely won a match since the US Open which puts me off so I’ll sit this one out and watch it.
Tips
Back G.Dimitrov vs D.Goffin – Over 22.5 games for a 4/10 stake at 1.80 with William Hill
Back it here:
WON – Back J.Murray & B.Soares to beat I.Dodig & M.Granollers for a 4/10 stake at 1.91 with Betfair
Back them here:
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