Ideal Conditions?

Rune got off to a great start...

And that's not always the case with Rune. He tends to get dragged up in long matches that he should be winning easily... which makes him too exhausted later on in tournaments. He was excellent against Fucsovics, really frustrating him with his defense, moving Fucsovics around (one of his biggest weaknesses), and then really injecting pace into his shots at the right time. I really like these conditions for Rune... fatigue is less of a factor indoors, it's slow enough for him to really frustrate opponents with his defending, and he has the firepower to hit winners himself! As for Etcheverry, it was a good match for him today against Kecmanovic. However, I found that his biggest advantage was that he could be clutch and take advantage of Kecmanovic's biggest weakness - his performance during pressure moments (2/11 BPs converted). While I don't find the matchup against Rune as bad as it was for Fucsovics (Etcheverry serves and moves a bit better)... I still don't like it for him. I don't find many areas where Etcheverry has an advantage in this matchup, especially not playing on indoor hardcourt, and where Etcheverry is coming from two big battles already (yes, he has great physicality, but still). Rune should be able to defend well here, and he has more tools to make an impact offensively with greater firepower and a much better net game! Etcheverry might keep it competitive for a while, but I have a feeling Rune will "run away" with it a little bit in the end...