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Three to See: Canada Masters Day 2

Jake Davies
Tennis

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By Jake Davies

  • Three matches to see on Day 2 of the Canada Masters
  • Borna Coric vs Tomas Berdych [5]
  • Mikhail Youzhny vs Stan Wawrinka [2]
  • Fabio Fognini vs Steve Johnson [15]
TORONTO, CANADA – Second seed Stan Wawrinka takes to the court and is one of our three to see for Day 2 of the Rogers Cup.

 

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Borna Coric vs Tomas Berdych [5] H2H: 2-0 Berdych

One of our must-see matches on Day 2 of the Canada Masters, sees Borna Coric face Tomas Berdych in their third meeting on the ATP world tour. Berdych leads the head-to-head 2-0, but Coric is a talented, young up-and-comer at just 19 years of age.

Coric has not pushed on to the heights that many expected him to reach at this point in his career, having previously being as high as No.33 in the world. One of the many reasons behind Coric’s fall in the rankings is firstly because of his lack of firepower and secondly, due to the many changes he has made to his coaching set up.

The young Croatian enjoys playing his tennis deep behind the baseline, while Berdych will aim to shorten the points, step inside the baseline, and in effect, play positive tennis against his younger opponent.

Prediction: Berdych in 2 sets.

Mikhail Youzhny vs Stan Wawrinka [2] H2H: 3-2 Youzhny

Youzhny and Wawrinka meet in the battle of the one-handed backhands. Wawrinka is chasing a Top 4 seeding for the upcoming US Open as he attempts to track down No.4 Rafael Nadal, with a good showing in the Canada Masters. The Top 4 seeding is of the greatest importance to the Swiss as it would mean he would avoid the Top 2 seeds before the semi-final, which makes a huge difference.

Youzhny, now at 34 years of age, is rising up the rankings again. He started the year at No.127 in the world and now sits at No.61. Youzhny’s decision to play on the Challenger circuit instead of the Australian Open qualifiers, proved to be a fruitful course of action for the Russian – winning seventeen matches in a row and claiming three Challenger titles in the process.

Youzhny leads the head-to-head 3-2 and won all 3 of the hard court meetings against Wawrinka, which has a lot of relevance in this particular match up.

I think Wawrinka will come through this match, but he could drop a set to a great shotmaker of Youzhny’s ilk.

Prediction: Wawrinka in 3 sets.

Fabio Fognini vs Steve Johnson [15] – H2H: 2-0 Fognini

Fognini comes into his Canada Masters campaign fresh from a title win in Umag. His opponent, Steve Johnson, is also in great form following his semi-final showing in Washington last week.  The American, Johnson is closing in on a Top 20 ranking, which is a huge accolade for a man that played a lot of College tennis and was extremely successful at that level. Many believe that the positive tennis he played at the University of Southern California, actually helped Johnson’s net game immensely.

Johnson likes to utilise his dominant forehand wing and will look for every opportunity that he gets to strike winners from that particular side. An interesting battle will be whether Johnson’s prowess at the net will hold up against the Italian – Fognini loves expressing himself with extravagant passing shots from both sides.

Prediction: Johnson in 3 sets.

Play begins in Toronto at 11am (4pm BST).