Everyone has played a match in the Nitto ATP World Tour Finals now and acclimatised themselves to the conditions so the quality of the tennis should be even higher on Tuesday as the second round of games begin inside the o2 Arena in London.
It is do or die for a couple of players on Tuesday while two others will have the chance to put one foot into the semi-finals of the tournament on what is another massive day in the season ending tournament.
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Afternoon Session
Raven Klaasen & Michael Venus vs Nikola Mektic & Alexander Peya
The two losing pairs from Sunday’s action meet to begin Tuesday’s schedule when Raven Klaasen and Michael Venus taking on the pair of Nikola Mektic and Alexander Peya. Both pairs know that losing is not an option if they want to keep their destiny in their own hands.
Klaasen and Venus did at least pinch a set on Sunday which might help them going forward but I’ve got to say that neither pair really impressed me too much. I guess this one will be won by the team who improves the most but we can’t really tell that before the start of the game so this is an easy one to swerve really.
Kevin Anderson vs Kei Nishikori
The first singles match on Tuesday sees the Wimbledon finalist Kevin Anderson taking on the former US Open finalist Kei Nishikori in a battle of Sunday’s winners so whoever wins here will have one foot in the last four.
Anderson was solid against Dominic Thiem in his opening match but Thiem had openings that he couldn’t take advantage of. Nishikori powered past a disappointing Roger Federer in his opening match and he must now fancy his chances of going on and winning the group and avoiding Novak Djokovic in the semi-final.
I expect Anderson to be game here but I mentioned before the tournament that nobody arrived here in better form than Nishikori outside the main two. The Japanese star backed that up on Sunday and he can do it again here.
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Evening Session
Juan Sebastian Cabal & Robert Farah vs Jamie Murray & Bruno Soares
The two best sides in the group meet to open up the evening session when the Colombian pair of Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah take on Jamie Murray and Bruno Soares. Both pairs won their opening match so a second win will have them looking very handy.
Murray and Soares have a 4-2 lead in meetings between these two pairs which might be significant. I thought they played pretty well on Sunday but I always think they have too many flat spots in their matches which cost them massively. I’m not sure what I made of the Colombians on Sunday night so I think I’ll watch this rather than bet on it.
Roger Federer vs Dominic Thiem
It is win or bust for both Roger Federer and Dominic Thiem on Tuesday evening. If Kei Nishikori wins the earlier match then Thiem is out with a loss here while the same fate will befall Federer if he loses and Anderson wins earlier in the day.
Federer looked very rocky in his loss to Nishikori on Sunday night. He was grouchy and frustrated and you could tell all was not well in his camp. There have been rumours going around that he has a hand injury and him cancelling his practice on Monday did nothing to silence that. Thiem had opportunities against Anderson on Sunday afternoon but he couldn’t quite get the job done. I expect him to be competitive here.
The Austrian actually holds a 2-1 career lead over Federer and if the Swiss legend has got a problem with his hand then Thiem would have every chance here. I’m not sure if Thiem will win or not but I think he’ll be competitive so the 5/6 that he wins a set will do me in this one.
Tips
Back K.Nishikori (-1.5 games) to beat K.Anderson for a 4/10 stake at 1.91 with Betfred
Back him here:
Back D.Thiem (+1.5 sets) to beat R.Federer for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Boylesports
Back him here:
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