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After Roger Federer’s success at the ATP Rotterdam event, the tennis tour now moves to Memphis for its next event and features a string of quality players.
The hard-court tournament attracts a lot of big servers on tour with the likes of John Isner, Andy Roddick and Milos Raonic all set to feature in this one.
Here’s my five hot-to-trot tips for the entire tournament to make sure that whatever the result, this tournament is a memorable one for you.
Milos Raonic to win the tournament
With a hard-court surface and the presence of several other big servers in the tournament, the winner of the tournament is going to either have a brilliant defensive ground game or a dominant service game of his own. Milos Raonic definitely has one of those.
The Canadian is off to a stellar start in 2012, taking out the ATP San Jose earlier just two days ago and looking good to deliver again in this tournament.
He should have no trouble reaching the quarterfinals where he will likely meet either Ryan Harrison or Oliver Rochus – both of whom don’t have the firepower to keep pace. His semifinal opponent could be Andy Roddick, but after the American was dispatched in straight sets by Denis Istomin at San Jose, his opponent may well be Julian Benneteau.
The Frenchman reached the semis at San Jose before also losing to Istomin and is definitely one of the in-form players on tour, but he cannot contain the serve and power of Raonic when he is firing.
Should Raonic reach the final, his opponent could be the No. 1 seed John Isner, but again, maybe not. Isner has a tough assignment to reach the finals, with a plethora of in-form players in his half such as Denis Istomin, Grigor Dimitrov, Bernard Tomic, Kevin Anderson and Radek Stepanek.
With a potentially volatile field for Isner and Roddick having a tough time of his own lately, Milos Raonic winning the ATP Memphis event looks like an excellent tip.
Denis Istomin to beat Jurgen Melzer
Denis Istomin had a brilliant week last week as he made the final of the ATP San Jose before eventually going down to Milos Raonic.
He disposed of American up-and-coming stars Sam Querry and Michael Russell and then took out the No. 1 seed Andy Roddick (only dropping a set in the process). Istomin then took out Julian Benneteau in three and now looks set to carry his form across to another hard-court tournament in the United States.
Bernard Tomic to Beat Ivan Dodig
At the Australian Open, local Bernard Tomic proved to many why he is the player to watch in the next few years. Despite going down to Roger Federer, his potential and playing ability were on display for all.
His first-round opponent will be Ivan Dodig, who hasn’t beaten a player in the Top 50 this year. Dodig can turn on the class sometimes, but against Tomic, the class gap is simply just too high.
Kevin Anderson to make the quarterfinals
Anderson continues to climb the world rankings and comes to this tournament as the seventh seed and No. 35 in the world.
The South African star made the last eight in San Jose before being defeated by eventual winner Milos Raonic. Despite being pushed by Dimitrov and Ebden, Anderson showed great class in his ability to come out with victories.
He should have no troubles with Robby Ginepri or Sam Querry, and while his success in the later part of the tournament still remains to be seen, he should at least make the quarterfinals of the tournament.
Ryan Harrison to beat Jack Sock and Rochus or Bogomolov
Another player that lost out to eventual winner Milos Raonic at San Jose was Ryan Harrison.
Harrison showed his prowess to beat the seeded Oliver Rochus after dropping the first set, and his form in the semifinals was second to none.
Jack Sock will be a 2-0 affair for Harrison, but his second-round encounter against the winner of the Rochus-Bogomolov match will be a much tougher affair. He already took down Rochus at San Jose and may well do so again.
Alex Bogomolov only progressed through to the second round at Rotterdam due to Stakhovsky retiring hurt and was promptly flogged by Richard Gasquet in the second.
With his best form, Harrison has the class and ability to make it to the quarterfinals and win both of these matches.
Whatever happens, Memphis will be an exciting tournament with plenty to keep us interested.
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