The Miami Open is underway, but I can best describe the Wednesday action as being qualifier loaded which also meant the matches had been set late and the layers were playing catch up when it came to prices being dished out.
Half of the matches scheduled for Wednesday involve a player that has come through the qualifiers and that can work in two ways for those players- the first is that they are tired after playing on back to back days and are then picked off by their First Round opponent, or two that they are battle hardened and can catch an opponent who is not as familiar with the conditions as they are.
Of course the majority of those coming through the qualifiers will be hoping it is the latter as the First Round action continues. The big names on the Tour won't be in action until the end of the week but that doesn't mean there isn't any potential for picks before that.
After the disappointment of Indian Wells for the picks, there is a feeling that this new week can be more productive after both picks came in on Tuesday. The Monica Niculescu pick had the element of luck that was missing at Indian Wells and hopefully that will be built upon over the next couple of weeks.
Alison Riske - 3.5 games v Mirjana Lucic-Baroni: These players meet for the second tournament in a row, but I would be very surprised if Alison Riske is able to dismiss Mirjana Lucic-Baroni as comfortably as she did in Indian Wells.
Well it was comfortable on the scoreboard at least, but could have been a completely different match if Lucic-Baroni had taken the chances that had come her way.
Neither player can really point to a lot of form to take into the match so the win at Indian Wells may be an important deciding factor and also means Riske has won the last two matches between these players. Both players can be erratic though and you can never be completely sure what you're going to see on the court when either takes to it.
Lucic-Baroni did had to pull out of the tournament in Acapulco with an injury and I do wonder if that is still a lingering concern for her and I will look for Riske to win a closer match than at Indian Wells. If Lucic-Baroni can take the chances that come her way, she has every chance of causing an upset, but I think Riske will have enough confidence in her return game to come through 64, 64.
Jan-Lennard Struff v Benjamin Becker: It has been a poor start to the 2015 season for Jan-Lennard Struff who may have felt it is the right time for him to really start pushing up the World Rankings. Instead he has slipped a little after winning just two matches since Auckland in January and now faces his compatriot Benjamin Becker.
Becker is another player that might have looked at his 2014 performances and expected himself to kick on up the World Rankings, but he too has suffered a lot more losses than wins in the first three months of the season. However, Becker may have gained some confidence from two wins at the Irving Challenger last week and I can understand that as being a reason he is favoured to win this match.
In saying that, I think Struff has been unfortunate not to have more wins under his belt as he has missed match points in a defeat in Rotterdam and lost a Davis Cup rubber 10-8 in the fifth set to Gilles Simon.
I do think Struff has some real upside about his game, but he has to cut out the sloppy errors that have put him in trouble in matches, but I expect him to be aided by Becker who is never far away from a sloppy service game himself. There is every chance this needs a deciding set to separate the players, but I will look for Struff to earn the breakthrough and perhaps set him up for a decent run in a kind draw in Miami.
Juan Monaco - 3.5 games v Ruben Bemelmans: He has come through the qualifiers and plays left-handed, but I struggle to make much more of a case for Ruben Bemelmans against Juan Monaco in this First Round match on Wednesday.
Any player that comes through the qualifiers has to be respected, especially as Bemelmans had to come from a set down to beat Dustin Brown in the final qualifying match. However, he won't be helped by the mistakes that Brown makes in this match as Juan Monaco is capable of sitting out on a court all day and playing long rallies.
Monaco is making his way back up the Rankings at a good time of the season for him with the clay court season not far away and the last month on the Tour has been particularly productive for him. The hard courts are not his favoured surface, but I think he can outlast Bemelmans in this First Round match, particularly as the Belgian player is not really accustomed to playing at this level.
As I said, you have to respect a qualifier, but I would imagine Monaco will wear down Bemelmans who has had a couple of days tennis under his feet already. Both sets should feature a number of break point chances for both men, but I expect Monaco is perhaps a little more ruthless in a 64, 64 win.
MY PICKS: Alison Riske - 3.5 Games @ 2.00 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Jan-Lennard Struff @ 2.15 Bet Victor (2 Units)
Juan Monaco - 3.5 Games @ 1.83 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Miami Update: 2-0, + 3.32 Units (4 Units Staked, + 83% Yield)
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