There was a moment when the opening selection on Thursday looked to be going the same way as some of the others this week, but the player rallied to make sure they did not blow a strong winning position.
It ultimately proved to be the start of a positive day with four of the five selections returning as winners and has given me a chance of having a winning week over the next three days. We are down to the Quarter Finals at the four events being played this week and all of the Friday selections will be placed in this thread.
Roberto Carballes Baena v David Goffin: Both of these players have produced a couple of solid victories here in Marrakech on the clay courts.
The mental edge may be with David Goffin, who beat Roberto Carballes Baena in Miami last month, but that was a match on the hard courts and the latter is a confident clay court player.
That won't surprise anyone when you think of the nation he is representing, but Roberto Carballes Baena looks to be a little underrated in this one. He has won his matches with a bit more ease than David Goffin has won his and the numbers back that up.
Overall Roberto Carballes Baena has had the better clay court numbers than David Goffin over the last twelve months and he does hold a win over the Belgian on this surface. You also have to factor in the length of time that David Goffin was on the court in his Second Round win over Pablo Andujar compared with Roberto Carballes Baena who worked his way into the Quarter Final with another straight sets win.
Both of these players have had similar serving numbers on the clay courts, but it is Roberto Carballes Baena who has looked to have the superior return game. It just feels slightly off to have the Spaniard as the underdog in this match and I think he will have the edge in the returning department in this match to edge past David Goffin.
Federico Coria - 1.5 games v Richard Gasquet: He is unlikely to reach the level achieved by his older brother on the ATP Tour, but Federico Coria has enjoyed a pretty good couple of years in his own right. The Argentine is at a career best World Ranking and is a solid clay court player who may be able to have some solid runs over the next two months.
The two wins in Marrakech have come in good style this week and Federico Coria is deserving of his spot as the favourite in this Quarter Final.
Federico Coria is getting plenty out of his serve, but he has also been playing the big points pretty well this week and that has seen him improve his break percentage compared with the rest of the season on the red dirt. The level being produced on the return is encouraging and it is a level that Federico Coria will feel he can maintain.
A few years ago Richard Gasquet would have been a real test for Federico Coria and likely would have gone into this kind of match as a significant favourite. The veteran has played well and held himself together at key moments in the ATP Marrakech tournament, but Richard Gasquet may have to step up his level if he is going to win this match.
Richard Gasquet has just about held himself together at key moments in his first two matches here, but Federico Coria represents a step up in class, especially on the clay courts.
The latter has been serving a little more consistently than Richard Gasquet in this tournament and I think that shows up here to help him move through to the Semi Final.
MY PICKS: Roberto Carballes Baena @ 2.20 Bet365 (2 Units)
Federico Coria - 1.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Paula Badosa - 2.5 Games @ 1.80 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Ons Jabeur - 4.5 Games @ 2.10 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Ekaterina Alexandrova - 3.5 Games @ 1.87 Bet Victor (2 Units)
John Isner @ 1.83 Bet Victor (2 Units)
Weekly Update: 5-5, - 1.46 Units (20 Units Staked, - 7.30% Yield)
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