Ricky’s preview and picks for men’s quarterfinal day at Wimbledon
Although there have been a few surprises along the way, the top four seeds are all through to the Wimbledon quarterfinals on the men’s side. Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, and Stan Wawrinka will all take the court as part of a blockbuster Wednesday schedule.
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. (9) Marin Cilic
The head-to-head series between these two has been an unmitigated disaster for Cilic. He is 0-12 lifetime against Djokovic and their last six sets have all gone to the Serb by scorelines of 6-2, 6-2, 6-1, 6-1, 6-0, and 6-3. That being said, at least a few of the meetings have been entertaining, including at the 2008 U.S. Open and last summer at Wimbledon (also in the quarters) when Djokovic’s current streak of dominant sets began. Cilic led two sets to one before the eventual champion took control.
Both men survived fifth sets to reach the last eight. Djokovic needed an extra day on Tuesday to finish off his comeback from two sets down against Kevin Anderson. Cilic went the distance versus both Ricardas Berankis and John Isner. With the world No. 1 having endured a serious wakeup call, chances are good he will seal the deal in this one without having to go five. Djokovic in 4.
(4) Stan Wawrinka vs. (21) Richard Gasquet
I went to look up their head-to-head history expecting to find a whole bunch of epic encounters in the ATP World Tour annals. In actuality, there has been just one such thriller. Wawrinka outlasted Gasquet 6-7(5), 4-6, 6-4, 7-5, 8-6 in the French Open fourth round two years ago. Aside from that, the two veterans only squared off way back at the 2006 Paris Masters (Gasquet prevailed 7-5, 6-1).
This could be another five-set war, because Wawrinka is obviously brimming with confidence as the reigning Roland Garros champion and Gasquet is a proven force at Wimbledon who is coming off impressive defeats of Grigor Dimitrov and Nick Kyrgios. The one-handed backhands on display will be things of beauty. The Swiss gets a slight edge as a two-time major champion, whereas this is only Gasquet’s third career trip past round four of a slam. Wawrinka in 5.
Vasek Pospisil vs. (3) Andy Murray
Even at 100 percent, this is not a good matchup for Pospisil–especially not at the Scot’s Wimbledon stomping grounds. Murray is 3-0 lifetime in the head-to-head series, 6-0 in total sets, and has not even been pushed to a tiebreaker. Throw in the fact that Pospisil played 10 sets on Monday and the Canadian is really going to be up against it in this one.
Meanwhile, Murray has been in stellar form at the All-England Club (and really throughout this entire season). Pospisil will try to keep points short and force the issue at net with more frequency than usual, and that will play right into the hands of an opponent who is an expert in the department of service returns and passing shots. Murray in 3.
(12) Gilles Simon vs. (2) Roger Federer
Ricky: Federer cannot be disappointed by Monday’s Simon vs. Tomas Berdych result, as Berdych is the more dangerous opponent (the Czech once beat Federer at Wimbledon, in 2010). That being said, Simon is no fun to play against and he has troubled the Swiss at times in the past. The Frenchman won on back-to-back occasions in 2008 but Federer has since taken five in a row to lead the head-to-head series 5-2.
Simon has been in ruthless, refuse-to-miss form since going to a fifth set with Gael Monfils in round three, winning four consecutive sets (all with ease) at the expense of Monfils and Berdych. Getting the best of Federer–on grass, no less–is a much tougher proposition. The 33-year-old has not dropped serve this entire fortnight and has faced only two break points. Federer in 4.
Topics: Andy Murray, Atp World Tour, Marin Cilic, Novak Djokovic, Ricky Dimon, Roger Federer, Sports, Tennis News, Wimbledon 2015
-@Dimonator’s PREVIEW FOR MEN’S QUARTERFINAL DAY @Wimbledon 2015, NOVAK OVER CILIC? STAN WAWRINKA? ROGER FEDERER…- http://t.co/tXL9tq5fU0
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