The rise to power

Whether it's Etcheverry or Hijikata, they are looking for a big tournament this season to finally get back to their best level.

Not the most confident players on the tour, even though Etcheverry has played some good little matches recently, which suggested a rise in power. With his Davis Cup victory and his ultra-clean first round against Dzumhur, I want to believe in a good end to the season for him. He serves well, plays with his forehand, and seems to have found the punch he was missing. The observation is almost similar for Hijikata, even if the Australian has a lower average level of play. He has had some flashes of brilliance, but nothing exceptional. On the other hand, he is coming out of the qualifiers and has just won his R1 in a big fight. You have to be wary of him because he can cross the draw when no one expects it. In the game, he doesn't like good servers/players who attack him too much, which is exactly what Etcheverry is becoming at the moment, and on top of that, the Argentinian maintains great consistency from the baseline in long rallies. We saw Hijikata multiply the net attacks against Carabelli in the first round but he had a little more time, I doubt that will be the case again this time and I simply want to trust what I see, that is to say...