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Jiri Vesely has been playing here in Prostejov with so much reserve, and still hasn't lost a single set. True, he could have, but he didn't. Only those that stand out with their quality can do that, and the match against Krajinovic marked his rise on this tournament. I expect better tennis with each round, and if yesterday was an improvement, I expect another one today as well. He is an ATP player with one title at that level this season, and Ignatik is a typical challenger player. Truth be told, the Belorussian is in form, but he lacks the quality that Vesely has, and Vesely really wants to win the title here. The quality difference is indisputable, and Jiri can cover this handicap even with 70% of his strength. I will not even count in Ignatik's fatigue which will definitely be a factor because even if it was the start of the tournament, I would still be placing this bet because of the opponents. Details

Suarez Navarro is currently playing the best tennis of her career. It is no accident that she is the 8th player in the world which is a career best for her. She easily defeated Niculescu who knows how to get under everyone's skin with her playing style. However, nothing helped the Romanian. The Spanish woman is a patient player, doesn't make many mistakes, and precisely that will not suit Razzano today. The Frenchwoman is having some physical problems, she can't be more consistent than Suarez Navarro, she can't last longer in the rallies, she can't move better. The quality difference is huge, not to mention the form. Suarez Navarro will not go out on the court and demolish Razzano with her winners, but she will break her down with her consistency, throw her off court with her spin shots, force her to play physically demanding tennis, and at a high level - and Razzano lacks that at the moment. Details

Isner has earned wins here in Nice in the 'Isner-style'. He took one break in three sets against Johnson, same against Lajovic, but today he is facing an opponent much more dangerous than Johnson and Lajovic. Thiem has finally found his rhythm, and concentration is clearly not a problem for him this season. He played 16 tiebreaks, won 15 of them. He only lost the first one, on the first tournament of the season, and he won all of them since. He has enough quality and aggressiveness to do the job with his serve and use the American's weak returns, and eventually, if nothing else, take the sets into tiebreak. And I believe that Isner will not win today. Thiem caught his rhythm, he is winning on his third consecutive tournament and he is looking good. I think he will resist Isner's serve and in my opinion, it's more likely that he will take a break on Isner's serve than the other way around. Details

Pouille is not really a player to bet on when he's the favorite, but in these matches, underdog at the ATP level and at home court, now that's the right place for Lucas to show all of his talent. It is enough to say that he has five ATP wins this season (5-5). Mayer is not a smasher, nor a typical clay court player and a lot of his game is based on serve. He is (too)often unconvincing at the return and that is where I see a chance for Pouille. The Frenchman is a good player, he has weapons to confront Mayer and put pressure on him, and on his weak return. He said that he is highly motivated, which is important for me and I wouldn't be betting on this if it was a challenger. He came here with a goal. He got the wild card, for this tournament but for RG as well, and he wants to go to Paris with confidence. There is no doubt in his motivation, and when that's the case, then Pouille has everything he needs to make Mayer's life difficult to the maximum. Details

Donati will probably be a good player as years go by, but currently he's not even a stable challenger player. In fact, he's not a player who will constantly play semi-finals, finals, tie wins etc. on a challenger level. He's still far from a Top 100 status. Berdych s a lad who has been in the Top 100 for years, who has no defeat from a player outside of the Top 10 this year, who at least reached the semi-finals in seven out of eight tournaments. The Czech's intensity, level of the game, hits... That's something Donati hasn't met yet in his career. This will be tutoring for the young Italian who himself said that he would probably learn something from that match. Teacher Berdych doesn't even have to be "tough". I see Berdych's sooth win with at least two breaks per set. Kudos to Donati, but he can't fit into the same sentence with Berdych. This will fall through only if Berdych decides that he will fall because of some non-nonchalant thing or by playing at 50% of possibilities, which I doubt will happen. He's not that type of a player. Details

When I saw Kravchuk and Brands were playing against each other, I immediately pictured a margin of 22.5. If they were playing indoors, it would probably be bigger for a game. However, this margin of 20.5 is simply missed. At least for one game, and even two if you ask me. Brands is, I have to admit, a better clay player. However, the fact that Kravchuk doesn't play often on clay doesn't mean he doesn't know how to play on it. Two seasons ago he took Riba in two tie-breaks, Ebden to three sets. Last year he won a futures, this year he took a typical clay player Starace in three sets and one tie-break. Kravchuk is not a clay player, but it's obvious from his games in the last two to three seasons that he would have more successful scores if he played on it more often. His serve is a weapon in those conditions, because of aces and because of the pressure he puts in behind the serve. Brands is a server who plays well in those conditions because he moves well on clay, but his weakness is still the same, and that's the return. The German doesn't have a return and both players are masters and keeping the serve deadly with the starting shot. I double we will see one tie-break here, and if that happens, then this margin is over the top. Besides, two players of such characteristics should reach 22.5 even on the slowest court in the world. Details

This pick is not based on the fact Young retired from his last match at all. The story is much more elaborate, with Kolschreiber at its center. The German has started doing much better since the return on clay. He did great in Munich, forced Murray into a third set tie-break and could have won. He played in Madrid again well against the Scotsman while he had the power for it. Kohlschreiber is in good rhythm on clay and obviously loves clay court season. Young is in a different situation. Clay is not his favorite surface. he took a one month break after Houston and then retired from the Dimitrov match with back problems. He said he's ready now but his back doesn't change anything here. The fact is that Kohlschreiber is doing his absolute best at the moment (two great matches against Murray, who won both Munich and Madrid), while Young played half a match in the last month. He's got no rhythm and has never been doing particularly well on clay. I think Kohlschreiber is set to record a convincing win today. Details

When Jaziri and Hasse won their quarter-final matches, I didn't expect the Dutch to be as favored as he is now. For me this is a duel of equals than the quotas would suggest that. Both showed excellent tennis in Aix en Provence which was sort of a redemption for generally bad season. At one point Hasse was out of the Top 100 because of bad games, and Jaziri is tied the wins for the first time here after AO. The level of the game suggests an even match, without too much favorizing of either of the players. Malek only once lost his starting hit in the last two matches, he's firm on the serve and he played against tennis players in rhythm. Hasse is doing good here. He played well, but this pick is not based on his bad game or an impression, but on the fact that I think that the margin is bad considering everything we've seen. I wouldn't be surprised if Jaziri won today, and I'm sure he'll at least give Hasse a beating. I don't believe this will be a one way match. Details

Mayer met Lopez yesterday to play two tie-breaks in a match without a single converted break point yesterday. His serving and somewhat bad return were were obvious, just like with Lopez. Raonic lost one point per service game on average in the first match. He beat Monaco with one break per set but Mayer has a much better service and aggressive game after it. Monaco is not aggressive and has noting to put pressure on Raonic. I've opted for this bet and not total games over because of Mayer and Almagro's match from a few weeks ago. Mayer had it easy until first set tie-break but lost it and then fell apart. I think the first set will be much closer here, serving will be dominant and there won't be too much chance against service because both opponents are good servers. The only way for either player to create opportunities in opponent's service games is though errors, not good return. Details

Although it's not convencional to play an over on clay, here we have the base for our optimism. Madrid is played on 600 m altitude which makes the conditions faster, all players point that out. Next to that, we have two players whose primary weapon is the serve, and they base their game on it. On one side we have Mayer who is a clay player, and thus has the advantage, but he's also quite predictable on the return, something that's not typical for clay players. His serve is great, but he's one of the worse tennis players in the Top 30 on the return. Muller built his whole career on the serve. His deal is that he can throw bombs, he uses the court to his advantage, as well as the placement of the serve. His low slice and coming outs surely won't suit Mayer because of his return, but honestly I don't see Muller continuously being dangerous on the return. He's also quite "static" in that segment, and he's playing against a player whose best part of the game is his serve, as well as aggressive playing. I agree that Mayer has the advantage for being a clay player and knowing the conditions, but in Madrid, in fast conditions, I don't believe this is going to be a one-way match, especially not since both of them are predictable. The serve is their strongest weapon, return among weaker. Mayer has a history of playing clay matches without a break, and I think he will continue that, for himself and because of his opponent. Details

After a win over Tsonga, Cilic said that was one of his best performances on clay. Since I saw the match, I was truly surprised by him saying that. It's clear that he is fooling himself because the truth is, he will need a lot more tournaments to find rhythm since he simply does not play well. His match against Djokovic in which he won a total of three games confirmed it. Estrella went on to beat him easily in Barcelona as well. Cilic said he was not at an expected level after that match and I don't think anything could have changed in a week or will change any time soon. Vesely has had ups and downs in 2015 but he did reach two ATP finals and a semifinal. He had rhythm and that crisis following the title in Auckland is now in the past. Vesely made progress now that clay season started. He has everything Cilic doesn't - results, rhythm, momentum. Cilic is the better player but without those three things, this match is much closer than the odds suggest. Marin is doing badly, he's not convincing and I cannot help but think he might even lose here because Vesely is far from being a naive player. Given his level, Marin does not deserve to be trusted much and I think this is a great bet. Details

I've been betting on Cervantes this whole week. Actually, since Mersin because the Spaniard is obviously in a great form. He proved it here in Ostrava. He didn't have any problems whatsoever till the final. Kellovsky, Ward and Martin were easily beat in the first three rounds. He passed a great mental and physical test against Ramirez-Hidalgo yesterday, who connected wins in the last four challengers, and got to the semifinal in the last two. While Cervantes's been playing great for a while now, Pavlasek didn't show anything before Ostrava. He got his first challenger win this season here, and then had a good lot in the first two rounds, which brought him a good rhythm. I can't say anything bad about the win against Pouille, just that the French can be nonchalant. Munoz-De La Nava missed a 2-5 in the third set yesterday. Pavlasek showed a great fight here, but not much more. These kinds of results are no mystery to Cervantes lately, it's just his quality, and the Czech is not his level when he's playing like he is. Let's just say that they faced each other a few weeks ago and the Spaniard easily won in the Mersin qualifications. I expect a similar thing in the final today. Cervantes is no nonchalant Pouille, nor will he miss what Munoz did. He was leading 1-5 in the second set, and the Czech came back at 5-5, Munoz lead 2-5 in the third, and then lost 7-5. The Spaniard won't allow anything like that, and I think his quality and talent place him above Munoz, especially with the tennis he's been playing here in Ostrava. Also, this is Pavlasek's first final ever, and we should keep that in mind. I think only the audience will be on the Czech's side, but the audience can't save a break-ball or serve an ace for him. Details

This is third challenger SFs for Ceccinato in the last 3 weeks. That proves he has confidence form, rhythm and most importantly - quality. Hats off to Hamou for the greatest achievement of his carrier but he has not recorded a single CH win in his carrier before Turin and that cannot be a coincidence. While his results here are something new, Ceccinato does this all the time. The Italian did drop a set in two out of three matches but his game after that was brilliant. He covered this margin in all three matches and he's the ATP main draw material. Hamou wants to get better at this level but the difference in quality is there. The Italian has more experience, he's better rested and let's not forget that the Frenchman play a total of 6 matches here (Qualifying rounds+main draw. I believe Ceccinato is headed for a win. Details

Cecchinato has shown most during Vercelli. He allowed only five break-points, lost his serve only once and dealt with his opponents without a lot of trouble. What he impressed me with was a huge palette of solutions with which he can end a point. I've seen him numerous times, I know his qualities, but I was surprised how he kept the same level for three matches. Marco is really playing great and it's no coincidence that he passed the ATP tournament qualifications twice this season. He's not your typical clay player, he has a good serve, he likes to dictate the tempo, and he has strong hits from both wings. I like to bet on such players because when such players crush, then it means they're playing with a lot of confidence and that they're in their momentum. Volandri is a man who, which most of you may find strange, I appreciate. However, he's in a slight downward projectile since last year, and here, just like Cecchinato, he came to the semi-finals without a lost set. However, with a little difference. Marco crushed. Pippo had a lot of ups and downs. In the first round he was losing with a double break in the first set, and yesterday at 4*-5 he saved 00-40 without De Greef and who knows what would have happened if he had been a better player. Cecchinato showed more, he has aggressive hits, a better serve and his level is higher than Volandri's. I didn't forget about head-to-head, it's the only reason I didn't play 6/10, but that head-to-head have their secrets. Three out of four defeats by Volandri happened during 2013, at the time when Volandri won the final tournament of the best CH players, and in the season when he had over 30 wins on that level. What's more important, Cecchinato drastically progressed since then, and Volandri fell. This is a different Marco, and a different Pippo. Details

Although the bet doesn't seem overly logical, I'll try to explain what I base my convincing that Dodig has a chance to win on. First of all, Ivan played the last Indian Wells tournament really well. Then I "rushed" into it and played a counter-handicap on Sousa, and Dodo did it routinely. One round later he took one Federer to a tie-break of the third set. Let's head back, let's go to Melbourne. He took a set away from one Nishikori, and he didn't play bad at all. My personal impression is that Dodo has some trouble with rhythm, but not the game. He didn't deserve to be where he is thanks to his quality. I'm being led by experience from this season, and it says the following: twice I bet on him this year, and he didn't disappoint me. Twice I played against him and it was in the same positions as he is today - both times he surprised me and confuted my thoughts based on lack of rhythm, shape, injuries... Dodig is a Top 50 player any time of the day. Regarding clay, he doesn't have a match in singles, but we mustn't forget that last week he played Monte Carlo doubles semi-finals with Mel. Haider-Mauer is holding the ranking of his career and for some time he's been playing well. This is, in fact, the best season of his career. He has his pace, he has confidence, but except for my opinion that he's playing above his possibilities, I also think that he's overpriced. This is a 50-50 match and the Austrian can't be a better player than Dodig, not even on clay. I know all his possibilities, I've seen him numerous times on challengers. He's a solid player, but today I see Dodig as the winner and only because I respect the Austrian's shape, I'll go with 4/10. Details

This tip is based on Youzhny's bad game and Copil's good overall performances in Bucharest. The Romanian doesn't have a single match on clay this season but the situation was the same last year and he still beat Mannarino in the first round. The Romanian reached round two here 4 times in total. He has very good serve that easily goes over 220km/h. Her service is his strong suit because it allows him to collect a lot of free points. He likes clay because he doesn't move that well and clay conceals that. It also numbs the serve a bit but gives Copil good chance in rallies. We have a fired up local player who reached second round four times here and the Russian, who is having a horrible year, which is only a continuation of his decline that started last season. The usually emotional Russian is lifeless, emotionless and has not slammed a single racket against the floor this season. He seemed like the man who could retire very soon. He seems to be headed for a Top 100 exit, Youzhny doesn't seem good his games and results and bad, while Copil has the game, aggression and good results here. I'm sure he won't lose without putting up a good fight. If he loses at all. Details

While watching Coppejans here in Mersin, my impression that this guy will enter Top 100 this season was confirmed. In fact, the level of his tennis already belongs to this company. He does have some trips to the unknown, but that's all part of growing up and maturing. When he is in momentum and plays well, then it looks just like here in Turkey. I wanted Krajinovic to defeat Ilhan because the Serb would be the favourite in that match, and he didn't earn it at all. Ilhan passed and, to my surprise, is once again seen as a favourite which can't be true. Even while I'm writing this, the quota on the Belgian is decreasing because the market reacted on these things: Coppejans displayed better tennis and he is simply a better player than Ilhanwho will spend the rest of his life around this ranking without any ambition for greater things. Kimmer will be a Top 10 player and very soon outgrow these types of tournaments. Coppejans left his last four opponents on only 4 (!?) games. He is confident, aggressive and has stronger arsenal in his game. Also, there are no brakes in the finals. Younger players often lose in the finals because they are impressed. Coppejans has 2-0 in Challenger finals, while Ilhan has 3-9. The Turk is, as it can be seen from the number of finals, a quality player, but still a player that best suggests his limitation with the awful result from these finals. Coppejans is a better player, he displayed better tennis in Mersin, his career trajectory is such that he is on his way towards Top 100 with unstoppable speed and he might cross completely to the ATP level next season. He is the clear favourite for me today. Details

Cervantes is doing great here in Mersin. He is in good rhythm every since the qualifications start, having won all his qualifying matches in straight sets. That's huge since it's clay surface and since he already played three matches. His main draw performances were just as good. He sailed through he Kudryavtsev match in the first round, allowing the Russian only one break point. Mate Delic won only 4 games in the second round. Veiv just got back after an injury and I cannot say there's something wrong with his wins here but Mecir lost power in the third set while Dzumhur made too many unforced errors after the first one. Cervantes is at a higher level and has much more potential. Cervantes is doing great, convincingly and seems invincible. Veic mostly wins because his opponents are bad and he cannot count on that against Cervantes. I think the win over Damir is the reason for these odds at Veic, I expected them at 1.50 max. Details

Becker is 8-25 on clay and he's a Top 50 player. Him and this surface are not getting along, with the slow conditions killing his strongest weapons - serve and aggressive game following it. That style is very hard to impose on clay, he's never done well in these conditions, which only goes to display his potential on this surface. Bautista-Agut, on the other hand, has just the game for this surface. He works hard, he's consistent, and knows how to force opponents into making mistakes. He, on other hand, doesn't make many. Clay is very important in factor in this match, and almost, Bautista beat Becker in a grass court ATP final last season when Becker was doing brilliantly. Bautista is doing much better on clay since that allows him to use his strong suit, while numbing Becker's style. I don't think the German will take more than 6 games here, not against someone like Bautista. Details

It may not be logical to bet on a player who on a 7-match losing run but there are some circumstances that resulted in that streak. Most of the defeats were on hard court and indoors, which are not Kovalik's favorite conditions. he payed the price to trying and interestingly, no one beat him convincingly, even though he mostly played specialists for those conditions. The Slovak is a clay specialist. He won the challenger title on that surface last season and made it into Top 200 thanks to clay. Maybe he thought he can do well early in the season on other surfaces or maybe he couldn't make it to South America but the risk did not pay off. He probably couldn't wait for European clay court season to start. His opponent, on the other hand, is always doing better indoors. The Frenchman can play on cla, he has a futures title on it but taht will never be his best surface. He's 0-3 on clay and has not still good at CH level. He won only 4 games against Cecchinato in Naples last week, while Kovallik did much better on clay, which is why I think this should not be over 1.50, only because the Slovak is on a bad rhythm. Kovalik would be at 1.35 if this match was taking place last season. His defeats do play a role here but they mostly happened indoors and on hard court and cannot be a measure of his game on clay. This is his part of the season and Coucaud will be happy with what ever he gets today. Kovalik is ending his bad streak today. Details