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Ricky’s Tennis 10sBalls Picks For The 2019 Mutua Madrid Open • Roger • RAFA • Delpo?

Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina in action during a training session before the Mutua Madrid Open 2019 tennis tournament at Caja Magica in Madrid, Spain, 03 May 2019 EPA-EFE/JUANJO MARTIN
Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina in action during a training session before the Mutua Madrid Open 2019 tennis tournament at Caja Magica in Madrid, Spain, 03 May 2019 EPA-EFE/JUANJO MARTIN

 

 

Ricky’s full tournament picks for the Mutua Madrid Open

 

By Ricky Dimon

 

In some ways, the Mutua Madrid Open is more intriguing from start to finish than the preceding three Masters 1000 events on the calendar. Indian Wells and Miami feature much larger playing fields with 32 seeded players getting first-round byes, so some of the opening matches leave a bit to be desired. Monte-Carlo isn’t a required tournament, so its field is never the strongest.

 

The Madrid Masters, however, is an absolutely show from the get-go. A star-studded field is once again on hand at the Caja Magica and it is wasting no time being put on display. In fact, among those who already played main-draw matches on Sunday were Nick Kyrgios, Denis Shapovalov, and Felix Auger-Aliassime. Some of the seeds get started on Monday, while Roger Federer kicks off his campaign on Tuesday.

 

Roger Federer of Switzerland in action during a training session before the Mutua Madrid Open 2019 tennis tournament at Caja Magica in Madrid, Spain, 03 May 2019. Mutua Madrid Open 2019 will be held from 03 to 12 May 2019.  EPA-EFE/Kiko Huesca

Roger Federer of Switzerland in action during a training session before the Mutua Madrid Open 2019 tennis tournament at Caja Magica in Madrid, Spain, 03 May 2019. Mutua Madrid Open 2019 will be held from 03 to 12 May 2019. EPA-EFE/Kiko Huesca

It will mark Federer’s first clay-court match since the 2016 Rome Masters, and the 37-year-old Swiss’ opponent will be either Richard Gasquet or Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

 

“I have not-high expectations in some ways, but at the same time I also know that things are possible,” Federer commented. “Madrid always plays fast with the altitude here, so intrigued to find out myself. But [practice has] been good so far.

 

“I’m happy also that the decision I took last…December, when I started feeling like I definitely want to do the clay, that it was the right decision. I haven’t looked back at the clay-court build-up yet, or everything that I have been doing, like maybe I shouldn’t have. I’m happy I’m here and I’m happy I’m on the surface.”

 

Federer finds himself in a tough top half of the draw with Novak Djokovic and Dominic Thiem. He could meet Thiem in the quarterfinals and Djokovic in the semis.

 

Juan Martin Del Potro is also in the top half, on course to meet Djokovic in the last eight. Of course, the Argentine would do extremely well to make it that far in what is just his second tournament of the season. Del Potro returned from a knee injury to play in Delray Beach, but it showed that he was not ready. Now he is–hopefully.

 

“I think that right now I’m in a good situation and emotionally I’m feeling pretty well and I think that the negative things…you have to leave them aside and right now,” Del Potro explained. “I’m trying to focus on the positive things. It’s a good thing to be here and I’m thinking just to move forward and with all the experience that I have, try to do the things properly, try to do it once again, try to face the problems and just be back and do my best.”

 

“I always like to play in Madrid. I always feel comfortable. I have had good results in the past. Conditions here are quite good for me. The tournament is incredible, I feel the support of the people. It’s amazing here. I love it in this city. And overall, this tournament is one of the best ones in the world. All the players will feel really comfortable here with the city, the food, everything. It is an overall experience that makes it a really high level tournament.”

 

Rafael Nadal may be playing in front of a Spanish crowd, but the conditions aren’t great for him. The world No. 2 has never been as dominant at this event as he has been in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona, Rome, and at the French Open.

 

Nadal is on a collision course with Kei Nishikori for the quarterfinals. Other contenders on that side of the bracket are Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Borna Coric, and Danill Medvedev. Nadal awaits Auger-Aliassime in his opening match.

 

Quarterfinal picks: Novak Djokovic over Jan-Lennard Struff, Dominic Thiem over Roger Federer, Borna Coric over Jaume Munar, and Kei Nishikori over Rafael Nadal

Semifinals: Thiem over Djokovic and Nishikori over Coric

Final: Thiem over Nishikori

 

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on twitter at @Dimonator.

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