MEN’S TENNIS UPDATE FROM METZ AND ST. PETERSBURG WITH STAN WAWRINKA & DOMINIC THIEM THE ALL STAR MARATHON MAN OF 2016

Written by: Staff on 19th September 2016

MEN'S TENNIS UPDATE FROM METZ AND ST. PETERSBURG WITH STAN WAWRINKA & DOMINIC THIEM THE ALL STAR MARATHON MAN OF 2016

epa05525701 Dominic Thiem of Austria hits a return to Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina on the eighth day of the US Open Tennis Championships at the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, New York, USA, 05 September 2016. The US Open runs through September 11. EPA/JOHN G. MABANGLO |

By Ricky Dimon

The 2016 campaign has turned from the outdoor hard courts of North America to an indoor setting in Europe, but the more things change the more they stay the same: Dominic Thiem is playing tennis. Yes, that’s right; Dominic Thiem just keeps playing and playing.

Despite limping (literally and figuratively) through an injury-plagued hard-court summer that culminated with a fourth-round U.S. Open retirement (vs. Juan Martin Del Potro), Thiem is back on board for the beginning of the fall swing. He is the No. 1 in Metz, where an impressive 250-point field also features David Goffin, Lucas Pouille, and Nicolas Mahut. In St. Petersburg, Stan Wawrinka will be taking the court for the first time since capturing his third career major title in New York City.

Ricky previews the action and makes his predictions:

Moselle Open

No. 1 seed: Dominic Thiem

2015 champ: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (not playing)

Winners’ trophies are up for grabs on a consistent basis during the dog days of the fall seasong, and this week’s proceedings in Metz should be no exception. That means the Julien Benneteau title watch is on; as is the Gilles Muller title watch. Amazingly enough, neither veteran has ever triumphed on the ATP World Tour and they are a combined 0-15 lifetime in finals (Benneteau is 0-10, while Muller is 0-5). Benneteau is already through to the second round following Monday’s victory over Martin Klizan, and he awaits what should be a winnable date with either Dustin Brown or Paul-Henri Mathieu. Goffin, Pouille, and Mahut are also part of a tough bottom half of the bracket, so things could get especially difficult for Benneteau starting in the quarters.

Muller defeated Horacio Zeballos 7-6(5), 7-5 in his opener on Monday. The Luxembourgian’s draw appears to be a favorable one—depending on Thiem’s status. If the Austrian is less than 100 percent (and that may be the case based on how he looked at the U.S. Open), Muller has a great chance of reaching the semis…and beyond. An ice-cold Gilles Simon is the other first-round bye recipient in the top half, so this is a wide open section for someone like Muller or Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.

Semifinal predictions: Gilles Muller over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez and Nicolas Mahut over Lucas Pouille

Final: Muller over Mahut

St. Petersburg Open

No. 1 seed: Stan Wawrinka

Defending champ: Milos Raonic

Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland hits a return to Illya Marchenko of Ukraine on the eighth day of the US Open Tennis Championships at the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, New York, USA, 05 September 2016. The US Open runs through September 11. EPA/PETER FOLEY

Well, Wawrinka is not wasting any time getting back in action. The recent U.S. Open champion skipped last week’s Davis Cup festivites as Switzerland played its way back into the World Group for 2017, but apparently one week off is enough. Or is it? It goes without saying that Wawrinka’s motivation level could be an issue as he transitions from the U.S. Open title to one of the most obscure 250-point tournaments on the entire ATP calendar. This particular St. Petersburg field is actually a decent one with Milos Raonic, Tomas Berdych, and Alexander Zverev also participating.

Wawrinka finds himself in a soft top half of the draw, so it may be up to him in terms of how long he wants to stick around in St. Petersburg. Lukas Rosol (second round) or Fernando Verdasco (quarters) could take advantage if Wawrinka shows signs of fatigue or disinterest. Raonic, Berdych, and Zverev are all in the bottom half. A potential quarterfinal tilt could pit Raonic against Zverev, while Berdych likely awaits an opening contest against Andrey Kuznetsov before possibly meeting Albert Ramos-Vinolas or Mischa Zverev.

Semifinal predictions: Fernando Verdasco over Roberto Bautista Agut and Milos Raonic over Andrey Kuznetsov

Final: Raonic over Verdasco

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand.

Topics: 10sballs.com, Atp World Tour, Dominic Thiem, Moselle Open, Petersburg Open, Ricky Dimon, Sports, St, Stan Wawrinka, Tennis News

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10sBalls_com says:

September 19, 2016 at 10:26 pm

Men’s #Tennis Update From Metz & St. Petersburg With @stanwawrinka & @ThiemDomi The All Star Marathon Man Of 2016… https://t.co/kfet5FwKmw