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Even though it might not be the most convincing way to start a prediction against someone, but we have to put all the facts on the table. Zekic is probably in the rhythm of his career. He put together Sevilla quarter.final and Banja Luka semi-final, but I watched his two matches last week and I haven't seen any improvement from last year when I watched him several times, one of which was her in Sibiu, and on the Polish challengers. He accomplished everything with a lot of luck. Indisposed opponents in the first two rounds of Banja Luka, and then missed match point against Zeballos. If we look at his other performances, with those two challenger results, that is where we see his true quality. Kovalik might not be in such a rhythm, but he lost to and gave a hard time to great players, all of whom are much better than Zekic. He won a set against Martin, gave Cervantes a hard time, lost to Ungur in Banja Luka, but defeated Pospisil and Riba there. In the first round here he defeated Kamke, which is a much stronger win than Zekic's over Brkic. Last year Kovalik routinely defeated Zekic at this tournament, and even then Zekic came here in great rhythm for his standards (won a futures tournament, Challenger win in Banja Luka, Sibiu first round win). Kovalik is an offensive player, with better weapons and overall a better player with much better performances at this level and in continuity. Zekic is not used to this pace and that is one of the reasons I am betting on this. Result-wise, this shouldn't be over 1,50 and I am saying that only because of Zekic's pace, for which I believe will be more of a weight for him than a mitigating thing. Details

Uzbekistan decided on the clay court in order to make things tougher on the Americans but they pretty much shot themselves in the leg in this case. Sock said a few times that he likes playing on clay court. Also, Dustov does not avoid clay but he always recorded his best results in fast, indoor conditions. To make matters even better for the Americans, Dustov is horrible on clay this season. He's 0-7, with most defeats from challenger level. He lost the last match with two games against a player who is barely in Top 600, before that won only a game against Dutra and before that only 5 against De Greef. Those are the players who are not even close to Sock. If the match was to be played indoors, I'd be cautious, but there is not reason for it here. I think this is a great tip. Sock is better, clay is not the surface he avoids while Dustov's form remains horrible and sees his lose to challenger players on clay court. I expect the American to win easily. Details

Kowalczyk will most likely not will today but I think this margin is a game or two too low. Let me explain why. First of all, he has good serve that can see him win easy points and put pressure on the opponent. His problem is the fact he cannot do it for a longer period of time, which sees him lose matches. Secondly, this margin is underrating him because he focused on doubles matches more than on singles. I remember when he won a set against Rosol last season in Porstejov. His aggressiveness was close Rosol's, who is one of the most aggressive ATP players. We saw Arnaboldi and Lamsine losing to Polish players, which is why we cannot underestimate the power of home court, especially since Kowalczkky does not have to win here. He just has to win 6 games. Ceccinato played 13 challengers this season and made it at least into semifinals in 10 of them. Two of those 3 were not in Italy. He crashed out at another one in the second round. Also, he was in Geronva Monday, playing the final against Almagro. That means there could be fatigue present. Kowalczyk is not as naive as this ranking or margin suggest. Given all of that and his game style, I think he can win 6 games here. Details

Mertl is no longer what he was two seasons ago when he recorded over 20 challenger wins but I still do not agree with him being underestimated in such a way. Granted, he had only 5 wins at this level last season but he is still better than Otte, who allegedly got here only because Brown asked for a wildcard for him. Otte would keep on waiting on his challenger debut if he didn't get it. He is a futures level player and is coming here with two back-to-back defeats at that level. This is the most favorable draw for the Czech at this leave this season. I thought the odds would be at 1,40 before they came out. Details

Azarenka forfeited the lat match, but she said she's ready for US Open. What's more important, Vika forfeited because she didn't want to risk anything, not because she couldn't play. She felt the hamstring and didn't want to force it. Next to it, personally I'm satisfied with her performances lately. Wimbledon was good, she lost to Serena, failed against Errani in a bad match, but what's important - she usually wins with a handicap of the opponent the level of Hradecka. Except for the failure against Errani, she wont players like Svitolina, Kvitova and Wozniacki in this handicap on two hardcourt checks before US Open. Hradecka is generally playing a good season, but her failing rate is noticeable. Until Roland Garros she achieved her best results. With the Prague finals her game was at its peak, and after that she didn't tie wins anymore. In numbers, before Roland Garros, she had 12 WTA wins, and later only to. I played this prediction when Radwanska played against her in Wimbledon and I'm playing the same in the match against Azarenka who beat her twice this year. Truth be told, in the first match the Belarus oscillated, lost a set, but only a week later she covered this handicap. Details

I can't deny that Karlovic is the favorite in this match. However, he was never a crusher. He's mediocre on the return, especially against players who have a good serve. Such is the situation we have today. Delbonis is a clay player, but he's not typical. He has a good serve, he likes to be aggressive and head after his hits. He won't have to work a lot for points against Karlovic. Moving will be minimal. What's important is the serve and the aggressive note in the game. He has it and he usually plays like that. Just an example, last year he and Ivo played three tie-breaks in Vienna, and we didn't see a break-point in the whole match. I expect a tight match today too. Details

Tipsarević is in a very tough situation. he has not played for 18 months before making a comeback in early April. It was immediately clear that his level is not even close to where he was and it's really questionable whether he will ever get back to where he was before. His game is not improving with time and he had to pulled out of a few tournaments, but for reasons different t those that forced him to take a 17-month long break. He cannot find continuity, he has not played since Wimbledon and had pulled out of Wimbledon at the last possible moment. He also decided not to pay Washington last week. He needs matches. The last three of his matches were very convincing, to players worse than Bautista. We need to be honest and say the Spaniard is not at his last season's level but he is still Top 20 and the worst possible match up for Tipsarevic. Bautista is a hard working player who makes very little mistakes. If Janko decides for longer rallies, he will not see any mistakes from Bautista. I don't think he will go for that though, because that kind of a game would cause him trouble even at better moments. He has no continuity, no confidence. He won two games against Istomin and lost to Falla and Granollers easily. Those are Janko's last three matches. Bautista will take advantage of all of his problems. Details

Youzhny passed the qualifications. He didn't even play bad, but I simply can't forget what he's been playing throughout 2015, even last season too. That's still the same man, he just beat two weaker players in the qualifications and passed them. Troicki is a serious opponent, and even though he didn't start out the hardcourt season well because Groth beat him, the Serb is, if you ask me, the absolute favorite. Youzhny arrived to Montreal with an eight-game losing run, and that speaks enough about his game. It's kind of tiring to mention the Russian's negative numbers, I somehow thing more of the game impression. He's really "rusty". I've seen him a couple of times in the last month or two, and he's not a chip of the old player he used to be. Details

Nadal is not how we know him. He doesn't have the aura from before but that is important only when he's meeting one of the top players. Vesely is not one of them. The man has not recorded back-to-back wins in three months. Nadal is getting better each next match so I expect him to do better today than he did in the Verdasco match. Even in that one, Nadal covered the handicap. Vesely is not as good as Verdasco and is also is a bad rhythm. Nadal will definitely win one set 6-2 or 6-1. This margin is too low. Nadal is worse than last seasons but he is still too powerful for someone like Vesely. Details

I have to admit that I bet on the counter-handicap in the first round on Taro against Janowicz. I was glued to the stream and I had plenty to see. The Pole played a very, very good match. He didn't force anything, he even built points. His serve was good, but he didn't base so much on it as he usually does. He was calm and collected from the baseline, that is deliberate. After all, he hit 27 winners and made only 9 unforced errors. This Pole is the player that was in the Top 20. But I am not betting on this counter-handicap just because he played well in the first round. Cuevas was never a smasher. He is one of those clay-court players who have a good serve and he relies on it, while he often has problems on the return. For example, he didn't take a break in the first set against Schwartzman, but he took two in the second set. Everyone knows what kind of player Schwartzman is, he doesn't have a good serve, no strength in his strokes. Janowicz has all that, he is more confident and has stronger serve. Simply, Cuevas is not a smasher, and playing-wise, the Pole can compete with him on clay as well because it doesn't matter to him what surface he's playing on, if he's playing well. I don't see the Uruguayan's smashing, nor do I see an easy win, if he manages to win at all. Details

Bautista-Agut beat Corić for the second consecutive week without a lost serve. He had an answer to everything Coric did, from deep shots at the baseline to aggressiveness. The Spaniard is a consistent player, he makes a very little number of mistakes and Bedene struggled against such a player last week (Coric). The Spaniard is clearly doing everything better than the Croat. The Slovenian can be aggressive and is generally more aggressive than Coric but that results in more mistakes. Bautista loves those kind of players, he absorbs their power and fires as many shots back as possible, while punishing those that lack power. With a performance like against Coric, the Spaniard will record an easy win. Details

During the DC weekend Sousa let a Finnish outside Top 500 take only two games in three sets. He smoothly beat Nieminen and had great preparation for Umag's clay. Androic is a player who has a very negative record on the challenger level; he's a futures player. Sousa is AT level, he's on the verge of Top 50 and with his game style he shouldn't suit Toni. If he would be playing against someone aggressive, he might expect a bad day or something like that. Sousa is leveled and will know how to make use of the Croat's errors. He won't give him much, and Androic will have a tough day today. These are two levels of differences between them and I think the Portuguese should win smoothly. Details

Hats off to Giannessi, he played well in San Benedetto, but I give advantage to Ramos today, and here's why. Ramos had a tougher road to the final, and went through it in a great way. He only lost his serve in the first round, when he was serving for the match against Eremin. He only gave one game to Lindell after that, and crushed Lorenzi without losing his serve, and then Cecchinato, too. Those two are definitely better than Giannessi, regardless of his form. Ramos showed the difference between an ATP and CH player. Giannessi did come to the final without losing a set, but his toughest opponent was in the first round (Rola). Experience is also important in situations like these. The Italian's got 0-2 in the finals, and Ramos 6-6. Also, this will be the second final in two weeks for Giannessi. Ramos is a better player, and the way he beat his opponents tells me he's in a good rhythm and form. If he can play like he did in the last two days, he'll cover this handicap. Details

Mahut came here with very good form. Grass court is his favorite and he always does well on it. His game style is made for these conditions and I'm sure he'll cause trouble for Berdych today. I don't believe he will win but him making this an interesting match through his style is definitely to be expected. The Czech, on the other hand, played 4 sets against Chardy in the match that had 3 tie-breaks. That gives us an idea that Berdych will struggle on return against Mahut as well because his game and serve are even better for these conditions than Chardy's. He's also in a better rhythm after the win in Hertogenbosch. I don't think this will be an easy task for Berdych and I think he should lose a set. Also, I wouldn't be surprise if they go over this margin in three sets. Both are focused on serves, which should result in a small number of break point opportunities. I expect a tough match. Details

I normally have a phobia of betting at Kvitova because I like her tennis a lot, which is why I avoid suggesting that others should bet on her. But when I think about it, this surface, this moment after the first round, and this matchup are perfect for her. Japan's player has no power in her shots and even though she's good in defense, now that the grass court is still in a very good shape, she cannot defend against Kvitova. It's simply impossible. Had it been any other surface it would be possible but not here. Secondly, her serve is useless and each time she serves will be a chance for Kvitova to fire a bomb and force her into defense from the very start of the point. Petra showed why this is a special place for her in the first round. Wimbledon and other tournaments are simply not the same for her. She is recording slips always and everywhere but here. The matchup is ideal as Nara has nothing to threaten her offense-wise. On the other hand, Kvitova has one of the best serves which saw her lose only one service point in the first round. Here, at this place, I have faith in her. Details

I would agree that Groth is the favorite, but not such a favorite for the following reasons. Sam beat Sock smoothly, but except for the American having trouble with his finger, he's a player who relies a lot on his forehand. His forehand is the closest to Rafael's by the number of spins, and spins are something you want on grass. From the very start he was slow and without any will. Groth used that, but a good part of that result goes to Sock. Second of all, Groth is playing against his best friend. I'm not saying he will let him go with an honorable defeat, but it's never easy to play against your best friend. They travel together, practice together, they even share rooms when they play on same tournaments. They know each other very well. Even though Groth won both head-to-heads, one was in three sets, and another in two tie-breaks. I don't see Groth's smooth win here. Not just for the above mentioned, but also because of the fact that he's not a crusher. He's a server who, when he does a tie-break on a surface like this one, can be very happy, despite the match against Sock. I can't ignore that. Duckworth is a good player and today this will be a thriller in my head. Details

Mayer is 'training' aggressiveness even on clay, so obviously he will do it on grass-court as well, which takes even more from his service/forehand style. However, the problems remain the same and that is the return. It happens to him that he doesn't make a break on clay, a let alone on grass-court where he has less time to react. He played the first two sets against Kokkinakis without a break. On the other hand, Granollers is in fact a defensive player, but his game is somewhat strange, he plays aggressively on the serve, but then pulls back on the return. Sounds like an ideal situation for an over of games. Both can keep their service games. The Argentinian serves better, but the Spaniard is more 'cunning' and he know how to use angles and play smart. On the other hand, Granollers' return is better, but it will be hard to break Mayer on grass-court. Also, Mayer's return is often a problem even on slow clay conditions, so it will be today as well. With all that, I don't think this will end in straight sets. Granollers is a 'fox', he's a fighter, a smart player who knows how to get the best out of every court (he played very well indoors), and he is intelligent and versatile as far as strokes are concerned. I expect a tough match, at least two tiebreaks and minimum of four sets. I am giving Mayer the advantage, but I don't see it as a one-way street, so over of games seems like a very good bet. Details

Even though Hradecka, in theory, has the right game style for grass-court, the reality is quite different. She openly admits she hates this surface, and during the Wimbledon preview, she said that she can't wait for it to finish. She achieved her first WTA win under these conditions this year, and that says a lot. Radwanska started playing great after she arrived on grass-court. She played a semi-final and a finale of two grass-court tournaments ahead of Wimbledon, and when she won, she demolished her opponents. Low bounce, not enough time to react, bad footwork - all of this troubles Hradecka, and Radwanska has no problems with that. The Czech is in the lead 3-0 in their head-to-head matches and the last one was played in 2006, but that's not relevant. If Aga plays the way she did in the last two grass-court tournaments, and I don't see why she wouldn't, she will win today by at lest six games. Details

This tip is pretty straightforward. Sock is the better player when it comes to rallies but his strongsuit is serve and aggressive forehand. On the other hand, Groth has the fastest ever recorded serve. The Australian relies on his serve and converting a break point against him is a truly difficult task. The grass court is still in good shape the conditions are faster after a few matches have been played on it and I don't think we'll see any breaks in the first set. Both use serve as main weapons and this is grass court. Some really bad service games are the only way for us to see any player concerting break points here. Details

Yesterday Cibulkova smoothly beat Dart, but that player is no standard. The level of her game is not even near to the Slovakian's who didn't play for four months. Safarova is now another story. The Czech confirmed that she belongs among the Top 10 with the Roland Garros final, and now on grass I only expect her to confirm that. Serve, aggressive game - the momentum she's in, all that combined tells me that Lucie will only continue where she stopped by moving to grass she loves. We've seen what that looks like on Wimbledon last year. Cibulkova hasn't played in four months, even longer, and despite what she says, that's a huge break. She needs the rhythm, and she won't get any against Safarova. Her game is better for grass, she's more aggressive, stronger, firmer and with a lot more options on how to win a point. Let's say that everything will depend on the Czech. Yes, her record against Cibulkova is 1-3, but those defeats were a long time ago at a time she wasn't the player she is today. At a time when Cibulkova was in a better rhythm, the Czech crushed her last year on Wimbledon, and ow Safarova is even better. All points to the Czech's smooth win. Details