Hiji-cata?

The lucky-loser rule kicked in again with Hijikata and Royer, but hey, if you're playing nobodies too, it's easier, huh!

Alright, I’m kidding (in case there are Skatov fans here, y’know). Okay, I’m only half joking though. Skatov’s only weapons were his heart and his legs, to caricature it—not much power. You still have to go out and win this kind of tricky match, but Hijikata hasn’t shown a very high level either. I found him pretty stuck when it came to dictating play. His game will therefore give Cobolli time to settle into his own. The question is whether the Italian is even a tad in form and won’t be spraying balls into the mountains of Kazakhstan. They played at Wim last year, and I give Hiji more credit on grass than on indoor hard. The low bounce doesn’t favor Cobolli’s topspin, granted. He should have to battle a bit more. How can we know if he’ll be there mentally? If the Laver Cup fired him up, the Asian swing was a disaster for him. He’s back in Europe, but at a 250 in Almaty, with indoor performances that aren’t very flattering. Tricky analysis then, but if there’s something to do, it’s on the Australian...