Ricky’s picks for Day 4 of the World Tour Finals: Djokovic vs. Wawrinka, Berdych vs. Cilic
By Ricky Dimon
It will be a tale of two very different matchups on Wednesday at the World Tour Finals. Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka both handed out 6-1, 6-1 breadsticks in their opening matches on Monday. The winner of their showdown will be almost–if not officially–a lock to reach the semifinals. On the other hand, Tomas Berdych and Marin Cilic are in dire need of a win.
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. (3) Stan Wawrinka
Djokovic and Wawrinka will be colliding for the 19th time in their careers but for just the second time this season.
Although Djokovic is dominating the head-to-head series 15-3, they have had some memorable matches in the past. In fact, they have played three five-setters in the last two years; Djokovic won 1-6, 7-5, 6-4, 6-7(5), 12-10 en route to the 2013 Australian Open title and 2-6, 7-6(4), 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the U.S. Open semis last summer before Wawrinka prevailed 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 9-7 on the way to his first slam triumph early in 2014 at the Australian Open.
Dominance at this event is nothing new for Djokovic, whose victory over Cilic improved him to 20-9 lifetime at the year-end championship (16-5 in London, 4-4 in Shanghai). He has won 11 consecutive matches in London, a stretch that includes two titles. Indoor perfection extends all the way back to the 2012 Paris Masters, a tournament he won–again–two weeks ago.
Wawrinka was not in the same kind of form heading into the World Tour Finals. The fourth-ranked Swiss lost four of six matches after the U.S. Open and dropped his opening match at three events. He will have to do a lot more than beat Berdych in the Czech’s self-admitted “worst match of the whole season” to convince people that he is fully back on track.
(6) Tomas Berdych vs. (8) Marin Cilic
There is some good news for Berdych and Cilic: one of them has to win on Wednesday.
There will be no secrets between these two familiar foes. They have faced each other on nine previous occasions, including three times this season. Cilic has won twice in a row but still trails the overall head-to-head series 5-4. The Croat prevailed 7-6(5), 6-4, 7-6(6) at Wimbledon and 6-2, 6-4, 7-6(4) in the U.S. Open quarterfinals on his way to the title.
That triumph virtually single-handedly put Cilic in the World Tour Finals, although he was solid throughout the season with a current record of 54-19 to his credit. Berdych has the same number of match victories (54) despite capturing half of Cilic’s title total (four to two).
It is difficult to be encouraged about either player’s prospects after what transpired on Monday, but Cilic’s double-bagel setback can at least be explained. The world No. 9 was playing his first-ever match in this event and he was going up against an in-form world No. 1 in Djokovic. Berdych, on the other hand, had no excuse.
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand.
Topics: Atp World Tour, Barclays Men's Tennis Championships, Marin Cilic, Novak Djokovic, Ricky Dimon, Stan Wawrinka, Tennis News, Tomas Berdych
BARCLAYS MEN’S #TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS, RICKY DIMON (@RD_Tennistalk) GIVES HIS THOUGHTS FOR DAY 4 http://t.co/XyHT5T55ol #BarclaysATPWorldTour
RT @10sBalls_com: BARCLAYS MEN’S #TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS, RICKY DIMON (@RD_Tennistalk) GIVES HIS THOUGHTS FOR DAY 4 http://t.co/XyHT5T55ol #B…
RT @10sBalls_com: BARCLAYS MEN’S #TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS, RICKY DIMON (@RD_Tennistalk) GIVES HIS THOUGHTS FOR DAY 4 http://t.co/XyHT5T55ol #B…