The first round matches for the Cincinnati Open are in the book. Milos Raonic had a bye in the first round, while fellow Canadian Vasek Pospisil was able to come back to defeat Radek Stepanek in a very exciting match. Below I will profile the next two matches for these Canadian men, as well as some of the other more interesting matches in the second round.
Vasek Pospisil vs Roger Federer
I think Pospisil does have a shot in this match due to Federer having gone to the finals in Toronto last week. The problem though is that Federer had a bye in the first round, so he will still have had two days rest since his Finals loss to Tsonga in Toronto. Interestingly enough, both Tsonga and Feliciano Lopez lost their first round matches in Cincinnati after making the semi-finals in Toronto. Pospisil is playing alright, but I don’t think he has the ability to beat Federer on a hard court at this time in his career. Even though Federer is a big favourite, I’d take him in this match.
Play: Roger Federer 1.14 @ SportsInteraction.com.
Milos Raonic vs Robby Ginepri
Raonic should have no trouble with his second round opponent Robby Ginepri. Ginepri beat the young Austrian, Thiem, today in three sets, but Raonic should have no trouble with the 232nd ranked wild card. Expect Raonic to win easily and get into the round of 16.
Play: Milos Raonic 1.13 @ SportsInteraction.com.
Fabio Fognini vs Lleyton Hewitt
I think this is an interesting match. Fognini hasn’t been quite as good lately and Hewitt is always a tough out on hard courts. I actually like Lleyton to get the minor upset in this match. Fognini did destroy Hewitt 6-0, 6-2 in their lone match against one another in 2013, but Hewitt can really turn it on in some matches and I expect him to want revenge after his horrible loss to Fabio in China.
Play: Lleyton Hewitt 2.15
There are a few other interesting matches, but I’ll leave you with those 3 picks. Raonic will likely get the Ernests Gulbis in the round of 16, which could be a difficult match. After that though he is in a very good quarter with Berdych as the top player in the bottom of his quarter so I do expect Raonic to make the semi-finals in this tournament. After that anything can happen.
Tagged With : Lleyton Hewitt • Milos Raonic • Roger Federer • Vasek Pospisil