Rigor vs. madness

It's hard to know where you stand with Father Bellucci. Because when he's not in his tough, high-rolling mode, he can take a real beating!

I would have liked to see his last two matches to be able to tell you what's going on, but even so, we're not immune to a slump with him. Nevertheless, the last two matches in question were very close and demonstrated big battles with quite a few break points saved on his side. I would therefore hypothesize that he will indeed be our Italian. As for Walton, it's less certain, because the Australian is a little off at the moment. Or is it his level that's capped? A bit of both. His last three defeats were against guys who took control of the rally with a level too high for his counter-attack to turn the situation around. Bellucci has other qualities, but we're not on the same profile as Wong, Korda or Sakamoto. So I expect a better matchup for Walton compared to his previous matches, and therefore a match that risks seeing ups and downs, and being decided on a few details...