The buddies

Having played on the same team in team matches for years, this match promises a few twists and turns...

Just that, I think it’s a good level equalizer. We’ve just seen it between Baez and Kecmanovic in Kitzbuhel.

Next, I’d like to say that I don’t find Titouan amazing either. In Umag, he played a very good first match, and after that, with LVA + Merida, he was a bit spent. Here, his first round against an injured Carabelli was a bit up and down. In his defense, it was windy and he couldn’t really hit at full power. But still. First, it might be windy again because we’re actually not far from the ocean at all. Then, his closed forehand grip sometimes doesn’t really let him shank the ball under pressure. I also thought he’d be a more powerful player. He’s going to struggle a bit to make the difference against a guy who moves as well as Hugo. And so we might end up with a physical match, and there I think Titouan is still a bit behind.

Two wins in two meetings for Hugo already. He must pin him down a bit on his backhand. He’s going to move him around with his drop shots on this slow clay. And I saw him really confident against Dzumhur. I just hope he’ll be awake, because they’re playing first on centre court.