I have a few thoughts below with the rest of the Day 4 Picks added, but hopefully it will be easier to research the Third Round matches to be played on Friday and Saturday with another dry day expected at Wimbledon to get the tournament back on track.
Daniil Medvedev - 7.5 games v Carlos Alcarez: There is a bright future expected for Carlos Alcarez, although he is going to need some time to adjust to the grass courts. The 18 year old showed off all of his potential by Qualifying for the French Open and reaching the Third Round there, but the lack of grass court experience could be a hindrance to him here at Wimbledon.
The Spaniard has been compared to Rafael Nadal, which is not a surprise considering the expectations being placed on Carlos Alcarez, and he came through in five sets in the First Round to win his first ever grass court match. It is a confidence booster for Carlos Alcarez, but he will now be placed on one of top two courts at Wimbledon and is facing the Number 2 Seeded Daniil Medvedev who considers the grass courts a strong surface for himself.
A battling win in the First Round was perhaps more difficult than it looked like it was going to be for Daniil Medvedev, but he will be glad to get that victory under his belt as he backed up the title win from Mallorca. That will be encouraging for Daniil Medvedev and the Russian has shown he can be an effective return player on the grass to back up what is a powerful serve.
I think that will make the difference for Daniil Medvedev in this Second Round match, although I expect to see some solid rallies between the players. Carlos Alcarez has been a fun player to watch in his young career, but I think the overall play that is going to be coming at him from the other side of the net is going to be too much to handle and I would expect Daniil Medvedev to eventually underline his stronger ability on this surface.
You can't ignore the five sets that Carlos Alcarez had to play in the First Round and against an opponent who is far more limited than Daniil Medvedev on the grass. The serve was being attacked and I would expect the Number 2 Seed to be able to do that over the best of five set format, while Daniil Medvedev's own serve is one that can keep Carlos Alcarez under pressure.
This is a big spread on the face of things, but Daniil Medvedev was on the way to covering the line in the First Round before just losing his way somewhat. I am not sure Carlos Alcarez has the same kind of capacity as a big hitting Jan-Lennard Struff to turn momentum back in his favour if he falls behind Daniil Medvedev and the Russian should be able to move through to the Third Round with a good looking win on the board.
Roger Federer - 5.5 games v Richard Gasquet: An unfortunate injury suffered by Adrian Mannarino was the main reason an upset was avoided by Roger Federer in the First Round at Wimbledon and the eight time Champion at this Grand Slam almost admitted as much. While there was still time for Roger Federer to turn the match around having fallen 2-1 down in sets, the former World Number 1 was gracious enough to admit he got a little 'lucky' to earn his place in the Second Round.
A long-term injury and missing much of the last nineteen months of the Tour has hurt Roger Federer and at almost 40 years old it is hard to imagine him really getting back to his very best. He has overcome the odds before, but Roger Federer might find the very best players on the Tour too much to handle these days and you do have to wonder how long he will be prepared to be out there if he does not feel he can win any more Grand Slam titles.
Roger Federer will be back on Centre Court in this Second Round match and he will know he has to be better than he was a couple of days ago if he is going to progress. The match up with Adrian Mannarino looked a good one on paper, but this one may be even more comfortable for the Swiss superstar as he takes on a fellow veteran that has seen his best days behind him.
Richard Gasquet came through his First Round match in four sets and the Frenchman has always been very comfortable on the grass courts. Last month he was beaten at the French Open by Rafael Nadal and now Gasquet has to take on another old rival who has regularly gotten the better of him in the past.
The match up won't be one that intimidates Roger Federer, although he will be challenged by Richard Gasquet if the latter is anywhere near his top level. The Frenchman is a former Semi Finalist at Wimbledon and he has a decent serve that can see him move through the gears,
However, the main factor in this match is going to be the Roger Federer serve- if he can put up the strong numbers behind the serve, Roger Federer should be able to keep the pressure on the limited Richard Gasquet return game. That will be key to keeping the scoreboard pressure on his old rival and in their past meetings Roger Federer has been able to hold serve very efficiently against Richard Gasquet in their Grand Slam and grass court meetings.
In their four previous Grand Slam meetings, two at Wimbledon, Richard Gasquet has never won a set against Roger Federer. That could change in the Second Round here on their current form, but Roger Federer should have a bit too much for Gasquet over two, two and a half hours, and I think he will be in a position to cover this line after the scare of the First Round.
Cameron Norrie - 1.5 sets v Alex Bolt: Two players who have put a strong grass court preparation tournament under their belt before the start of Wimbledon will be meeting in the Second Round here. Both Alex Bolt and Cameron Norrie have kept the momentum behind them having won their opening matches at Wimbledon and they will be given an unfamiliar spot by opening up Court One on Thursday.
That can be a pressurised situation, but Queens Club Runner Up Cameron Norrie will receive plenty of support from the home crowd as he continues showing improvement on a weekly basis on the Tour. He has not had much grass court success in the past, but the run at Queens was impressive and Norrie has really shown development across the surfaces as he continues to mature as a top 40 Ranked player on the Tour.
I do expect Cameron Norrie to move further up the World Rankings in the weeks ahead of the US Open and having a strong Wimbledon will just add to the points. His win over Lucas Pouille was a solid one in the First Round and Norrie entered Wimbledon with strong numbers behind his serve and return despite playing four top 40 Ranked players at Queens.
His opponent Alex Bolt may also receive some support with a strong Australian presence in London, although it won't be like previous seasons. After winning a Challenger in Nottingham, Alex Bolt beat a higher Ranked player in the First Round, although he was the favourite to progress and did not disappoint the oddsmakers.
Winning a title will give the Australian plenty of confidence, but he only beat one player Ranked in the top 100 in Nottingham and I do think this is a different test for Bolt considering how well Cameron Norrie is playing.
The Alex Bolt numbers in the grass court matches played prior to Wimbledon were very impressive, but you can't ignore the level of opponent. His return numbers have been slightly better than the ones that Cameron Norrie has produced, but you have to appreciate the difference in level of opponent and I expect that to show up in this Second Round match where the prize for the winner may be a meeting with Roger Federer in the Third Round if the former World Number 1 can win his own match.
I expect some long sets to be played out, but Cameron Norrie is playing with a real intensity at the moment and has built a winning mentality which could be key for him here. The home support can only help and I think Cameron Norrie will serve well enough to earn his place in the Third Round in a three or four set win.
Felix Auger-Aliassime - 5.5 games v Mikael Ymer: There is so much to like about some of the young players being produced by Canada on both the ATP and WTA Tours and one of the leading names is Felix Auger-Aliassime. The 20 year old has made the second week at both the US Open and Australian Open and he looks to have a game that should be very effective on the grass courts.
Felix Auger-Aliassime reached the Final in Stuttgart and the Semi Final in Halle in preparation for Wimbledon and he was a very comfortable winner in the First Round. That will give him some confidence to surpass the Third Round run at Wimbledon two years ago, although Felix Auger-Aliassime is still largely a developing prospect who can throw in a shocking performance from time to time.
He does hold a win over Roger Federer on the grass this season though and Auger-Aliassime has held 92% of the service games he has played on the surface over the last month before Wimbledon began. That is a highly encouraging number, but it is the return of serve that will need to be improved if Felix Auger-Aliassime is ready to take the next step in his career.
While I think the return is still a tool that needs to be developed, Felix Auger-Aliassime may have some successes against Mikael Ymer who beat former Wimbledon Semi Finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in five sets in the First Round. It wasn't a massive upset if considered one at all, but Mikael Ymer has not really shown much on the grass courts in his young career and this is a completely different level of opponent in the Second Round.
There is very little experience than an improving Mikael Ymer can call upon on the grass courts and the win over Tsonga was only the second one he has managed against someone Ranked inside the top 100 on this surface. Before Wimbledon began, Ymer was only 2-2 on the grass courts and had held just 60% of service games played despite playing three players Ranked 94 or lower in those four matches.
The Swedish prospect is a strong returner though and that is where he could at least keep things interesting in this Second Round match against a superior grass court player. However, it is hard to imagine Mikael Ymer having a lot of consistent success in this match and I think that is where Felix Auger-Aliassime should be able to take some swings on the return to shift the pressure onto his opponent.
This is a fairly big spread for someone who has some limitations on the return like Felix Auger-Aliassime, but I think the Canadian should have enough chances to attack Mikael Ymer here to get into a position to find the breaks of serve to cover the line. The difference in the service numbers on the grass courts is telling and Felix Auger-Aliassime can find the big shots to move through to the Third Round with a good looking win behind him.
MY PICKS: Daniil Medvedev - 7.5 Games @ 1.95 Coral (2 Units)
Roger Federer - 5.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Cameron Norrie - 1.5 Sets @ 1.72 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Felix Auger-Aliassime - 5.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet Victor (2 Units)
Aljaz Bedene - 1.5 Sets @ 2.10 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Alexander Zverev - 6.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)
Sam Querrey - 1.5 Sets @ 1.66 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Kei Nishikori - 5.5 Games @ 2.00 Bet365 (2 Units)
Lorenzo Sonego - 6.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet365 (2 Units)
Marin Cilic - 5.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet365 (2 Units)
Jeremy Chardy-Ilya Ivashka Over 39.5 Games @ 1.85 Coral (2 Units)
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova - 4.5 Games @ 2.00 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Barbora Krejcikova - 4.5 Games @ 1.91 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Anastasija Sevastova - 1.5 Games @ 1.91 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Katerina Siniakova - 2.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet Victor (2 Units)
Darya Kasatkina + 3.5 Games @ 1.85 Coral (2 Units)
Angelique Kerber - 4.5 Games @ 1.90 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Ashleigh Barty - 6.5 Games @ 2.00 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Victoria Azarenka - 4.5 Games @ 1.83 Bet Victor (2 Units)
Wimbledon Update: 27-15, + 17.48 Units (84 Units Staked, + 20.81% Yield)
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