The second set of matches in the Nitto ATP World Tour Finals come to a close inside the o2 Arena on Wednesday and if Tuesday is anything to go by we are going to be treated to a brilliant day of tennis in the final event of the season.
The level of play on Tuesday was fantastic from start to finish so the four singles players and four pairs on show on Wednesday have a lot to live up to. When Novak Djokovic, Daniil Medvedev and Mate Pavic and Bruno Soares are on the card though the quality is certainly going to be there.
Afternoon Session
Mate Pavic & Bruno Soares vs Marcel Granollers & Horacio Zeballos
The day begins in the doubles with the two pairs who won their opening match on Monday as the number one seeds Mate Pavic and Bruno Soares go up against the Spanish-Argentine pairing of Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos.
I pinned my colours to the mast of the top seeds Pavic and Soares before the tournament started and they showed why that was the case in their first win and for the sake of my outright bet I’m hoping they come through this match unscathed. We also saw on Monday just how Granollers and Zeballos made it to this tournament despite only teaming up nine times this season. They might not play together as often as some of the pairs in this competition but when they do they make it count. These two pairs have met twice this year and both have gone to a third set/match tiebreak. I wouldn’t be surprised if this one does too but I’m happy to ride my outright in this one.
Alexander Zverev vs Diego Schwartzman
The opening singles match of the day sees the 2018 champion Alexander Zverev going up against the tournament debutant Diego Schwartzman in what is a big match for both men because having lost their opening match in straight sets, whoever loses this one can effectively say goodbye to the competition.
That might make the contest a competitive one but actually their four meetings to date have all been one-sided. They have both won two of the four matches each but all four have been by wide margins which suggests that form has a huge bearing on their matches. That probably gives Zverev an edge here as it was only 10 days or so ago that he was playing in a Paris Masters final. The negative to the German though is that second serve of his which is absolutely chronic and there were times against Medvedev in his first match that one the first serve missed you knew the double fault was coming along.
I can’t be investing my hard earned on anyone with a second serve like that. Schwartzman isn’t the best player in the world by any stretch of the imagination but he leaves it all out on the court and having beating Zverev at the US Open the hard court nature of this match shouldn’t worry him too much. I think the 3/1 on the Argentine is a little insulting and is well worth a small bet here.
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Evening Session
John Peers & Michael Venus vs Jurgen Melzer & Edouard Roger-Wasselin
The evening doubles might not be a do or die for both pairings but it is certainly a match they will want to win when John Peers and Michael Venus go up against Jurgen Melzer and Edouard Roger-Vasselin because both pairs lost their opening game.
Peers and Venus were surprisingly well beaten by Granollers and Zeballos while Melzer and Roger-Vasselin went down to the number one seeds of Pavic and Soares. There wasn’t really too much wrong with either loss from a point of criticism so you get the feeling that the team who plays the best on the day here will be the one which comes out on top. My gut feel is that will be the Austrian-French pairing of Melzer and Roger-Vasselin but that is only instinct and certainly isn’t strong enough to merit a bet on the match. I’ll sit this one out.
Novak Djokovic vs Daniil Medvedev
The final match of what should be an excellent day in the tournament sees the world number one Novak Djokovic going up against the recent Paris Masters winner Daniil Medvedev with both looking for a second win which could very well confirm their spot in the semi-final with a match to spare.
Both men looked in good form in their opening matches here on Monday and you sense now they have got into the tournament with a win under their belts there is a lot more to come from them so this has all the hallmarks of being an o2 classic. I’m really looking forward to this match because Medvedev looks to have the keys to the safe of the Djokovic game having won two of their last three meetings. He has a balanced game and the timing of his shots can get even Djokovic on the back foot.
The Serb relishes challenges like this though and having seen the standard elevated by Dominic Thiem and Rafael Nadal in particular on Tuesday I’m sure he’ll be looking to respond in kind here. Medvedev has won a set in all of their meetings since 2017 and he doesn’t seem the time to lay down for anyone here. I also like how he figures things out in matches so I would not be at all surprised if we are watching a third set here. We only need two tight sets to get the 22.5 games line covered though so I’m happy to take the over on that line.
Tips
Back D.Schwartzman to beat A.Zverev for a 2/10 stake at 4.00 with William Hill
Back him here:
Back N.Djokovic vs D.Medvedev – Over 22.5 games for a 3/10 stake at 1.85 with Coral
Back him here:
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