Match Prediction – Wimbledon – Second Round

These predictions are for matches to played on Thursday 26th July. The player in bold is my selected winner. I will update the post to include if I got each prediction correct or wrong.

Andy Roddick vs Janko Tipsarevic – Although I think Roddick will win, this will not be an easy ride for the American number one. He did not look all that comfortable on the grass during the warm up tournament for Wimbledon, Queens, where he lost to Rafael Nadal in the semi-final. Roddick also hasn’t played a lot of tennis recently since withdrawing from two clay court tournaments in May with a back injury. Tipsarevic has an all court game and is a brilliant shot maker. He is better than Roddick from the back of the court but I feel that the American’s serve will guide him through the match. – Wrong

Chris Eaton vs Dmitry Tursunov – Eaton beat Boris Pashanski, 500 places above him in the rankings in the first round. Eaton used his impressive serve to get him through the match which frustrated the Serbian journeyman. I would be very surprised if he beat Tursunov here as he looked limited from the back of the court. The Russian is sure to put more balls back in court than Pashanski and should go through in straight sets. – Correct

Nicolas Almagro vs Guillermo Garcia Lopez – Wrong

Rainer Schuettler vs James Blake – Wrong

Paul Henri Mathieu vs Jeremy Chardy – Correct

Marin Cilic vs Jarko Nieminen – Grass is Cilic’ best surface and I really fancy him here against Nieminen. Since his exceptional performance at the Australian Open at the start of the year the Finn has lost in ten first round matches and is very much off form. Cilic on the other hand has had an encouraging year and got to the semi final of Queens. – Correct

Jurgen Melzer vs Jesse Levine – Correct

Arnaud Clement vs Benjamin Becker – Clement beat Bjorkman in the first round as I predicted. Becker beat Davydenko in a minor surprise as we know the Russian is not comfortable on grass, especially against such a big hitter. Becker also has a big serve which i think Clement will have trouble returning and I make him the favourite here. Clement actually beat Becker last week in a tight three setter but a five set match in a Grand Slam is a very different prospect and the German will be full of confidence after a straight sets victory over the world number four. - Wrong

Richard Gasquet vs Sebastian Grosjean – Gasquet was sublime in his first round match and I expect him to cruise through against Grosjean who is not the player he once was. Grosjean hasn’t had a brilliant year and has withdrawn due to injury from three of his last four tournaments previous to Wimbledon, a sign perhaps that age is catching up with him. Theres no doubt though that the pint sized frenchman will still pull off a few amazing shots and keep Gasquet on his toes. – Correct

Augustin Calleri vs Giles Simon – Correct

Tommy Robredo vs Tommy Haas - Providing Haas is 100 percent fit he will win here. He has struggled with injuries this year however a four set win over Canas in the first round should give him a fair amount of confidence. Robredo is solid from the back of the court but I feel a lot more is needed to beat the talented Haas who can hit flashy winners off both wings. – Correct

Xavier Malisse vs Andrew Murray – Correct

Ernests Gulbis vs Rafael Nadal – Gulbis is a very talented player clearly with a bright future. He took down the one dimensional John Isner in the first round and dealt with his serve well. However I can’t see him troubling Nadal who is without a doubt on the form of his life. – Correct

Total Correct :: 9/13