The second set of matches in the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals concludes on Wednesday and it does so with the singles and doubles groups beginning to take real shape. By the end of Wednesday’s play we may well know half of the semi-finalists from the two groups.
Afternoon Session
Doubles – Henri Kontinen & John Peers vs Rajeev Ram & Raven Klaasen
It is the winners from Monday against each other in the opening match of the day on Wednesday with the winners of this one near enough guaranteed a semi-final spot and with the chance of winning the group on Friday.
I was at the o2 watching Kontinen and Peers on Monday night and I was very impressed. I can’t remember the last time I saw such a dominant performance on serve in the doubles in what is a format which really a point here or there is the decisive factor. Spain’s Lopez pairing never really got a look in and I sense Ram and Klaasen might not either.
These two pairs have met twice in their careers, both this year, and Kontinen and Peers have won both times in straight sets. On what we saw on Monday they look good things to repeat that here.
Singles – Andy Murray vs Kei Nishikori
It is the winners against each other in the singles too. Andy Murray laboured to a win over Marin Cilic on Monday night while Kei Nishikori blew Stan Wawrinka away and that all means whoever wins this will be in the semi-final barring a miracle.
These two have already featured in two epics this year so far with their lengthy Davis Cup clash at the beginning of it and their US Open quarter final more recently. In between that Murray beat the Japanese man in the semi-final of the Olympics.
Nishikori’s record against Murray isn’t fantastic but I suspect this is his time to shine and if not win this match then certainly run Murray close. Murray might have won in straight sets the other night but he was terrible for the first set with two winners to 14 unforced errors. His serve looked ordinary too and that sort of performance would be gobbled up by Nishikori. I like him with the 4.5 games.
Evening Session
Doubles – Marc Lopez & Feliciano Lopez vs Nicolas Mahut & Pierre-Hugues Herbert
It is win or bust for the Spanish and French pairings with even more on the line for the French pair given that they could lose the number one ranking if they lose this match. I think this is a tricky match to judge. They look well balanced on paper with a big server and a solid all-courter.
We know the French were off colour on Monday but it is hard to say that about the Lopez’s who just ran into a monster performance from Kontinen and Peers. On that basis the case could be made for some Spanish value but I prefer to sit this out.
Singles – Stan Wawrinka vs Marin Cilic
Both men were dismantled in their opening match and need a big win to get back on track here. Wawrinka’s defeat could be put down to an injury while Cilic just failed to take his chances and paid the price.
We’re guessing on this match really. Was Wawrinka injured against Nishikori or was it just a bad day at the office? Having backed the Swiss star outright I hope it was the latter and if it was he should be able to get back on track here. If it wasn’t you would fancy Cilic to win but he’s no value at odds on so I’m sitting this one out too.
Tips
WON – Back H.Kontinen & J.Peers to beat R.Ram & R.Klaasen 2-0 for a 4/10 stake at 2.00 with Titanbet
WON – Back K.Nishikori (+4.5 games) to beat A.Murray for a 4/10 stake at 1.83 with Titanbet
Back them here:
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