Opportunity dropped from the sky!

I don’t think either Ugo Carabelli or Merida were expecting to get through a round at Wimbledon, but the draw is in their favor and there will be a real big chance to reach the second round. Their motivation is going to change.

Almost no matches on the surface for Merida, who really broke through this season on clay and will now have to make a lightning-fast transition. So far, he’s only played one match on grass this season, which ended in a 6–3, 6–2 loss to Damù. But in his defense, he had to play again very quickly right after his clay-court challenger. Let’s say that with a few more days of rest and transition, he might have put up more of a fight. On the other hand, I’m not sure that, in the long run, he’ll be a good player on this grass, given that he doesn’t have huge offensive weapons. I don’t think he can adapt his game that quickly either. He’s a player who’s still very much in the building phase and still developing on clay already. I’m a bit skeptical about his level. The second thing that bothers me is also his mentality, because he’s a very nervous player, who can really fall apart mentally. There’s nothing worse than playing on a surface you hate or don’t master, and feeling like you’re playing really bad tennis because of it.

A few more matches on this surface for Carabelli, but no wins. I’m not sure that’s a real advantage, but still, it does count for something, given how specific this surface is. Last year, he had zero wins and five losses. He recently pointed out that he was injured during that period last year and wasn’t really at 100%. Is he still injured this year? You can have your doubts, since he hasn’t played since Roland-Garros and pulled out of Eastbourne with a right arm problem. What’s reassuring is that he did play an exhibition match at the Boodles and even took a set off Bellucci. I think he definitely has what it takes to bother a few players on this surface, even if obviously we prefer him on clay. If I had to choose, I feel like Carabelli could adapt better than Merida, for example.