Andy Murray v Kei Nishikori, Juan Martin Del Potro v Stan Wawrinka; US Open Wed. Pick And Pans
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Let’s hope Day 2 of the US Open quarterfinals offers something more than the first day. It won’t be hard. On to my picks.
Andy Murray v Kei Nishikori
It’s a rematch of Rio semifinals won by Murray pretty handily and I think Murray gets the win here, also. The quicker courts should help Nishikori but Murray leads 7-1 and other than a Davis Cup 5-setter and a loss at the 2014 ATP Finals, this series has been all Andy.
That said, Nishikori’s been steady all tournament, and really all year other than injuries. Murray’s looked good at times, like against the underachieving Grigor Dimitrov, or awful as he played in the Paolo Lorenzi match.
So which Murray shows up tomorrow? Anyone’s guess.
In the end, I think Murray’s the better, stronger player and has the greater upside. If Muray’s off like he was against the Italian, though, Nishikori will win. But it’s week two, it’s the quarters and there’s opportunity here so I’m taking the guy in form with the head-to-head edge.
The Pick: Murray in 4
Juan Martin Del Potro v Stan Wawrinka
Can Delpo keep it going? Why not. It’s just another tennis match. Every match is and if he approaches it that way and doesn’t let the moment get to him then he should beat Wawrinka, just as he’s done the last 4 times he’s faced the Swiss.
And this is their first meeting on hardcourts but that should only help the Argentine.
And like I’ve said with Stan all year, where are his big wins? Dan Evans? Illya Marchenko? Evans had a matchpoint and probably should have won. Marchenko took a set. And even though Delpo isn’t ranked among the best, Stan still hasn’t beaten a Top 10 player on the year.
Meanwhile, Del Potro has wins over Djokovic, Nadal in Rio and Stan at Wimbledon. And he’s gone all the way at the US Open before.
So I like Del Po here in the slugfest and I also like this match to finally offer some sort of interest in the what has been a very horrible night session this year at the Open.
The pick: Del Potro in four
ESPN2 will again have all the coverage starting at noon with the women’s quarterfinals.
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