A Tough Prediction

Can Zheng raise his level?

Michael has won three matches here in Cincinnati already, but it's been pretty scrappy. Going to a deciding set all three times, two times as a big favorite in qualies (nearly being eliminated in straight sets against Trevor Svajda). It was a poor start against Marozsan in his last match; in fact, he looked a bit lost on the court against the big strikes from the Hungarian. However, he was able to adjust nicely, and in the end, his tidier game was able to outlast Marozsan's more erratic and risk-filled game. We see it quite often: players who were almost eliminated in the earlier rounds keep making their way deeper in the tournament with scrappy wins and an increased sense of belief! Zheng is still very fresh on tour, and I'll admit that I'm still trying to get a complete read on what kind of players he prefers to face. He is steady from the baseline, has the ability to take the ball quite early, and serves and returns decently. Overall, I would say that he is a very balanced player.

I do think that Humbert tends to do quite well against these kinds of players; he is at his best when he gets to dictate as much as possible, which is when he can do some real damage with his attacking game. We have only seen three matches from him on hardcourt since the grass season, and despite only one win (against Andres Martin), his two losses are against a really good Shelton and Merida Aguilar. It feels like Humbert has been a bit more balanced in his performances overall this season than what we usually see from him. It's worth keeping in mind that Zheng has a bit of time on court in his legs, even though he looked physically OK in the end. If we see a good version of Humbert straight away, Zheng will need to raise his level quite quickly, since he has been quite fortunate to not have faced someone who could punish him more yet. On the other hand, as I mentioned, all these gritty wins add up, and I also see him as someone who could really take advantage of an erratic Humbert, with his own clean game!