It has not been a good week so far for the picks made as I dropped to 1-6, but with two players still involved from the outright picks, there is still plenty of potential for the week to end on a high.
The biggest story, as far as I am concerned, from the play so far this week is the semi-breakthrough Laura Robson is having in Palermo where she has reached the Semi Final of a Main Tour tournament for the first time in her young career.
I have said many times that I believe Robson has all the tools to become a good player, but she needs the tactical advice to put her game together. I haven't seen much of her matches at all this week, but the clay courts are unforgiving to those that want to 'ball bash' as much as possible without the patience to construct points so that is a real positive sign that Robson has done so well on the clay so far.
She hasn't had an easy path either as you can get those during the week following a Grand Slam event. Robson has beaten Roberta Vinci and Carla Suarez Navarro and both of those are more than just solid clay court players so real credit has to be given to the teenager for the week so far.
I actually think Robson has a winnable Semi Final too and I expect a leap back into the top 100 next week after this run and hopefully it will be the start of many things to come.
Before anyone asks, I am not one of these people that solely look at the success of their own nation's players- personally I think tennis is a sport where you can appreciate someone's talents regardless of where they are born as shown by the fact that David Nalbandian, Juan Martin Del Potro, Janko Tipsarevic and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga are some of my favourite players on the Tour.
However, I have stated my admiration for the way Laura Robson plays and I do think she is capable of reaching the top 20 and possibly higher if she can learn the best way to use all the tools she has at her disposal.
Nicolas Almagro - 4.5 games v Jan Hajek: This is slightly a risky choice considering the poor performances Nicolas Almagro has put in during his first two matches here, but the fact the Spaniard is still standing means I have to back him against what looks an overmatched Jan Hajek.
Hajek has done very well to reach this Semi Final stage considering he had not played one match on the Main Tour this season after ending last season with a 1-10 record. He has been playing well on the Challenger Tour which would have built up confidence, but Hajek just doesn't come across players of the quality of Almagro on any kind of regular basis.
Almagro is a top 10 player and is set to surpass the successes of last season and must feel he has a real chance of finishing in a position to get to the End of Year Championships for the first time in his career. He has been putting together much more consistent performances and he has two titles on the clay courts from earlier this season.
If he can put in a more solid performance than he has in the first two matches he has played here, I do like Almagro to be a little too strong for Hajek.
Juan Monaco - 4.5 games v Guillermo Garcia-Lopez: I have already picked Juan Monaco to win the tournament in Stuttgart this week, but I also think he is worth chancing to beat Guillermo Garcia-Lopez with a little gap in the game handicap in this Semi Final.
Monaco has played pretty well this week and the same has to be said of Garcia-Lopez, but it is the Argentine that has showed more consistency over the course of the season and I expect he will be able to control the match which will be played in long rallies.
This is the toughest opponent Garcia-Lopez would have faced this week and I think Monaco has shown enough that he is likely to win most of the extended rallies. The problem for Garcia-Lopez is that he doesn't really have the big serve to rely on and that means he is going to have to gut out every point, something that can take a toll when Monaco is as consistent as he can be.
Monaco also holds a comfortable 3-1 head to head record against the Spaniard, winning on each of the last three occasions they have faced one another. I expect he will get his fourth straight win in this Semi Final.
John Isner - 2.5 games v Ryan Harrison: I thought John Isner looked a vulnerable top seed at the start of the week, but he has played himself into some kind of form and I believe that his serve will put enough pressure on Ryan Harrison that he will find a way to get the win in straight sets.
Harrison is an improving player all the time and he is a real hope for the American public that will be looking for the next generation of stars now that Andy Roddick is almost at the end of his own career. There are genuine concerns in the United States that they are not producing the calibre of players like the John McEnroe's, Andre Agassi's, Pete Sampras' and Andy Roddick's of the past, but Harrison is their one hope coming through in the immediate future.
The problem can be Harrison's temper which can get the better of him and puts him in awkward positions in matches. He can be guilty of 'losing his head' at times and that is not something he can afford to do against someone who is capable of serving as John Isner is.
The spread looks tempting enough as it needs just one break of serve from Isner to actually put him in a good position to cover as long as he wins in straight sets. I expect he will and a 7-6, 6-4 scoreline would not surprise me.
MY PICKS: Nicolas Almagro - 4.5 games @ 2.00 Bet365 (2 Units)
Juan Monaco - 4.5 games @ 2.20 Pinnacle (2 Units)
John Isner - 2.5 games @ 2.00 Pinnacle (2 Units)
Weekly Update: 1-6, - 6.08 Units (10 Units Staked)
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