This is not a gambling site. These are my picks for the Estoril Open and the BMW Open-Munich for those who play the ATP Tennis Fantasy Season game. The teams entered into the game are ranked by the total prize money won by their team members.
Do not mistake me for an expert. I am just well informed and research oriented. However, if things don’t work out as I predicted, like most experts, I’m sure I can come up with some very good excuses,
By the way, feel free to join our sub-league, tennisdiary.com, we need someone to kick the Mookerchiefs butt. And, as always, jump in and disagree, criticize, praise, complain, or whatever.
Estoril prize money to the winner: $74,300. Munich prize money to the winner: $44,100.
ESTORIL OPEN
Frederico Gil is ranked 253. I assume Tursunov can take him.
Portas has beaten Marin the last five times they’ve played but it probably doesn’t matter. Monfils is 2-0 against Sabau including once on clay. Monfils is not playing well this year but he’s 1-0 against Portas.
Dlouhy vs. Gimelstob – who cares, Massu should get to the semis.
Moya lost to a qualifier last week and could lose to Zib but I don’t expect it. I will say that I’m choosing Moya on my team early in the season because it looks like he’s on the decline.
Safin vs. Davydenko is a very tough pick. Davydenko got to the semis at Roland Garros last year but he didn’t get out of the first round at Valencia or Monte Carlo. Safin got to the semis at Valencia and has a 2-0 record against Davydenko. When Safin beats Davydenko, it’s his opportunity to tell Davydenko who’s the real Russian number one.
Almagro won Valencia and got to the semis in Barcelona. Luckily I haven’t picked Almagro yet this season and he’s playing better than either Davydenko or Safin.
Robredo vs. Almagro – Robredo got to the quarters at Monte Carlo and the finals at Barcelona. It’s a tossup. I chose experience.
Who wins it? Nalbandian played Munich this week last year and won it. I’m expecting him to start asserting himself here.
ESTORIL OPEN
1. D. Nalbandian (1) | Nalbandian | Nalbandian | Nalbandian | Nalbandian | Nalbandian |
2. Nicolas Mahut | |||||
3. qualifier | Wang | ||||
4. Yeu-Tzuoo Wang | |||||
5. qualifier | Gil | Tursonov | |||
6. Frederico Gil | |||||
7. qualifier | Tursunov | ||||
8. D. Tursunov(5) | |||||
9. Gael Monfils (4) | Monfils | Monfils | Massu | ||
10. Razvan Sabau | |||||
11. J. A. Marin | Portas | ||||
12. Albert Portas | |||||
13. Lukas Dlouhy | Massu | ||||
14. Justin Gimelstob | |||||
15. Raemon Sluiter | Massu | ||||
16. Nicolas Massu (7) | |||||
17. Carlos Moya (6) | Moya | Moya | Robredo | Robredo | |
18. Flavio Saretta | |||||
19. qualifier | Zib | ||||
20. Tomas Zib | |||||
21. G. Garcia-Lopez | Garcia-Lopez | Robredo | |||
22. qualifier | |||||
23. Carlos Berlocq | Robredo | ||||
24. T. Robredo (3) | |||||
25. C. Rochus (8) | Rochus | Almagro | Almagro | ||
26. Gilles Muller | |||||
27. Nicolas Lapentti | Almagro | ||||
28. Nicolas Almagro | |||||
29. Marat Safin | Safin | Safin | |||
30. qualifier | |||||
31. Vincent Spadea | Davydenko | ||||
32. N. Davydenko (2) |
BMW OPEN-MUNICH
Bracciali vs. Coria is an interesting second round matchup. This is Bracciali’s eleventh year on the tour and he won his first title today in Casablanca. His current ranking of 51 is a career high. Coria is having a terrible time with his serve but he got to the third round in Barcelona before he lost to Almagro, not a bad loss. Bracciali beat Massu in the Casablanca final but had a relatively easy draw so I pick Coria to keep improving.
This is Haas’s first clay court tournament this year (Houston doesn’t count :0) ) and he’s done well in every tournament he’s entered in 2006. On top of that, he got to the semis here last year. He is German, you know. Youzhny is not a clay court monster and Haas beat him in Dubai so I have Haas through to the semis.
It’s too bad Coria and Haas are in the same half of the draw, that would be the best final. Coria breaks down and Haas gets to the final where he beats whoever comes out of the bottom half of the draw.
Who comes out of the bottom half? I have no idea. Besides Coria and Haas, you should probably choose all of your players from the Estoril draw.
There is one insteresting matchup: Pavel vs. Nieminen. Pavel beat Haas to get to the final last year but Pavel has lost in the first round in eight of ten tournaments this year so Nieminen should be able to beat him.
There are five Germans in the bottom half and none of them is worth much on clay. Why doesn’t Munich help it’s own players and have an indoor carpet tournament?
Srichaphan lost to a qualifier in Barcelona and lost to Monaco here last year but it’s not important and neither is Schuettler and Vik because Nieminen got to the semis here last year and should do it again.
Serra got to the third round in Miami this year where he lost to Ancic. Ancic lost to Nieminen in the second round last year but should lose to him in the semis this time around.
BMW OPEN – MUNICH
1. Guillermo Coria (1) | Coria | Coria | Coria | Haas | Haas |
2. qualifier | |||||
3. qualifier | Bracciali | ||||
4. Daniele Bracciali | |||||
5. qualifier | Ramirez Hidalgo | Rochus | |||
6. R. Ramirez Hidalgo | |||||
7. Potito Starace | Rochus | ||||
8. Olivier Rochus (5) | |||||
9. Tommy Haas (4) | Haas | Haas | Haas | ||
10. Ivo Karlovic | |||||
11. qualifier | Phau | ||||
12. Bjorn Phau | |||||
13. Simon Greul | Pashanski | Youzhny | |||
14. Boris Pashanski | |||||
15. Jurgen Melzer | Youzhny | ||||
16. Mikhail Youzhny (7) | |||||
17. Paradorn Srichaphan (6) | Monaco | Monaco | Nieminen | Nieminen | |
18. Juan Monaco | |||||
19. Robin Vik | Schuettler | ||||
20. Rainer Schuettler | |||||
21. Alexander Waske | Mayer | Nieminen | |||
22. Florian Mayer | |||||
23. Andrei Pavel | Nieminen | ||||
24. Jarkko Nieminen (3) | |||||
25. Florent Serra (8) | Serra | Serra | Ancic | ||
26. Robin Soderling | |||||
27. Janko Tipsarevic | Vliegen | ||||
28. Kristof Vliegen | |||||
29. Andreas Beck | Beck | Ancic | |||
30. Jan Hernych | |||||
31. Phillipp Kohlschreiber | Ancic | ||||
32. Mario Ancic (2) |