Monday was a busier day than usual for scheduled matches on the Tour, but nothing of interest came up for the Picks.
After a solid end to last week, I am looking for the momentum to continue on Tuesday where I have a single selection from Kitzbuhel.
Any Picks from Washington and Los Cabos will be added to this thread.
Daniel Altmaier - 3.5 games v Marc-Andrea Huesler: A really poor run of form on the clay courts will be difficult to shift for Marc-Andrea Huesler as he takes on an opponent who has put some strong results together on the surface.
Daniel Altmaier is at a career best World Ranking and he can move into the top 50 for the first time with a decent run here.
Two years ago he reached the Semi Final in Kitzbuhel, while the German reached the Quarter Final in Hamburg last week. Overall his numbers on the clay courts have been pretty good and he is facing an opponent who has lost his last seven matches on the red dirt, including First Round defeats in Gstaad and Umag in the last couple of weeks.
The challenge only increases for Huesler when noting he has lost both previous matches to Daniel Atmaier and both of those were on the clay courts- he was beaten in Geneva two years ago, but Altmaier also won their meeting in the First Round at the French Open without dropping a set.
On that day Daniel Altmaier had a significant edge on the serve and he should be able to get into the Marc-Andrea Huesler serve in this First Round match too. I would expect Altmaier to have the majority of Break Points in the match and he is playing well enough to believe he can get the better of the Swiss player who has been struggling on the clay as much as he has in 2023.
Kei Nishikori - 1.5 games v Lloyd Harris: Two players who have had injury issues to drop them well out of the top 100 of the World Rankings are hoping the US hard courts gives them an opportunity to get closer to the level they once showed.
This only makes this a bigger match for both Lloyd Harris and Kei Nishikori, who enjoyed strong tournaments in Atlanta last week.
Out of the two, Kei Nishikori is perhaps going to be offered a couple more Wild Cards into the biggest events compared with Lloyd Harris and so the harder path back towards the top of the ATP Tour will definitely need to be treaded by the South African. His results on the hard courts have been mixed, but the run in Atlanta will have helped his confidence, although he is facing a Kei Nishikori that has found a decent level on his return to the Tour.
Taylor Fritz ended his run last week and went on to win the title in Atlanta, but Kei Nishikori has won a title at Challenger level on his favourite surface and the former US Open Finalist will still feel more is to come.
Of course you can never really know how your body is going to react after such a long lay off from the Tour and playing weekly is tough, but Kei Nishikori does hold a win over Lloyd Harris on the hard courts of Washington and that will give him a boost.
He should have the edge on the return of serve too and Kei Nishikori can battle past this opponent.
Emil Ruusuvuori - 2.5 games v Yoshihito Nishioka: You have to first note that Yoshihito Nishioka made the Final in Washington last year and so has to be afforded a lot of respect as potential being a 'horse for course' in an environment he would have enjoyed.
However, the opponent has been less positive for Nishioka who has lost all three pro matches against Emil Ruusuvuori and on all three surfaces on the Tour. The defeat on the hard courts was a premature one as Nishioka had to withdraw in the middle of the match, but the defeats on the clay and grass have been much more routine and this is a tough match up for him.
2023 has already proved to be a tough year on the hard courts for Yoshihito Nishioka who was beaten early in Atlanta last week and has been beaten in his last five matches played on the surface.
In saying that, Emil Ruusuvuori had lost a bit of confidence having lost five matches in a row before arriving in Washington, but he was a solid winner in the First Round, which should help. He has shown he is a solid hard court player and Ruusuvuori is expected to have an edge on the serve, as has been the case in the previous meetings between these players too.
When you have been struggling for confidence, nothing will come easy, but the win in the First Round is expected to provide a major boost for the player from Finland. There should be breaks of serve both ways, but I am expecting Emil Ruusuvuori to come out on top more often than not and get the better of Yoshihito Nishioka again.
MY PICKS: Daniel Altmaier - 3.5 Games @ 2.00 Paddy Power (2 Units)
Kei Nishikori - 1.5 Games @ 1.87 Bet Victor (2 Units)
Emil Ruusuvuori - 2.5 Games @ 1.87 Bet Victor (2 Units)
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