The ATP’s Citi Open tournament heads into the quarterfinals and so do our tennis picks. On Thursday, we had a good day on the courts as we went 3-0 with our selections. We had Gael Monfils to top Bornic Coric and he came through for us. Coric didn’t offer much resistance, winning just five games. We also had Alex Zverev, who struggled a bit, but still came through for us. He outlasted Malek Jaziri in three sets. Lastly, we won with Sam Querrey, who ousted Alex Dolgopolov in two sets. Dolgopolov fought hard in the first set, losing 7-5, but then won just three games in the second set.
One thing you will notice in Friday’s four matches – the early match is between Jack Sock and Ivo Karlovic, and it won’t be previewed here – is that only one of them involves a seed outside the top eight. That’s right: Seven of the top eight seeds reached the quarterfinals, providing a lot of chalk. Now, though, you might begin to see the higher-seeded players lose… but maybe the pattern of higher-seeded winners will continue for yet another day. Let’s look more closely at the other three matches to follow Sock-Karlovic on Friday:
Alexander Zverev vs. Benoit Paire
There is an easy inclination to pick Paire in this match, because Paire is a player who can either be really hot or really cold. There aren’t a lot of in betweens with the Frenchman, who is always mercurial and a puzzle to people who don’t know him very well. Since he’s made it to the quarterfinals, Paire is definitely a foremost contender for the title for reasons which go beyond his place as the No. 4 seed in the tournament. However, on the other hand, Alexander Zverev seems to be growing and maturing this week. He won’t learn everything there is to learn about being a tennis player, but after a humbling loss last week in his hometown of Hamburg, Germany, Zverev has done what every young player needs to do when he suffers a personally disappointing loss: get back on the court and bounce back from the experience. Zverev has put together multiple winning performances, and not necessarily by playing his best tennis. Zverev lost a set in his round of 16 match against Malek Jaziri, but he regrouped to win in three. That’s the mark of a player who is finding ways to be better. This is more than what Paire has shown in a much longer career than the German teenager.
This feels like yet another moment in which Zverev will slowly but surely come of age. Take the German in three with your tennis picks in this spot.
Pick: Zverev in three sets
Sam Querrey vs. Gael Monfils
This is a match in which Querrey, the man who ambushed Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon, will be given a very good chance to win. However, if you noticed Monfils take apart the very talented Borna Coric on Thursday, allowing just five games in an easy romp, you can see that the Frenchman, who made the quarterfinals in Miami and in the Australian Open earlier this year, has done very well on hardcourts in 2016. More to the point, Monfils is playing with an energy and fluidity which show that he’s overcome injuries which dogged him during the clay-court season. Monfils has a better all-around game than Querrey. As long as he can get some first-serve returns in play, he should win. We’ll take him again for our tennis picks.
Pick: Monfils in straight sets
John Isner vs. Steve Johnson
This is a matchup in which Isner has to win tiebreakers. Isner did win the first-set tiebreaker against Marcos Baghdatis on Thursday, en route to a straight set win. This match will probably come down to a tiebreaker – most likely in the first set – because both players serve very well. It’s a close call, but Isner knows how to win tiebreakers with his serve. Give him the slight edge here. Take Isner with your tennis picks.
Pick: Isner in straight sets
