Tennis
2010-01-22 - Marin Cilic vs Stanislas Wawrinka
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Preview
Marin Cilic had a tough encounter against the local hope Bernard Tomic in the 2nd round and eventually had to come back from 2 sets to 1 down to go through in 5 sets. The big Croatian also had a tough time in the 1st round, and rather surprisingly so, against the evergreen Fabrice Santoro who had retired at the end of last season.
He was considered as one of the dark horses for this tournament and was a popular pundit pick at the beginning of the week. The win over Andy Murray at the US Open highlighted the potential Cilic has and he begun this season by winning the tournament in Chennai.
The Croatian went 21-10 last season on the hard courts and he reached the 4th round here in Australia as well as the Quarter Final at the US Open.
Marin Cilic has not been playing well so far in this tournament. He will need to raise his game against a player who does pose a tough match up for him.
Stanislas Wawrinka has come through comfortably with 2 straight sets wins. He has only dropped 15 games in the 6 sets he has played so far.
Wawrinka actually finished as runner up to Cilic in Chennai earlier this season, losing in 2 tie breaks. He was due to take part in another tournament but withdrew as he arrived late from India and he wanted to take further time off to prepare properly for this tournament.
The Swiss Number 2 is currently ranked as the World Number 19 and has always been a solid and tough competitor on hard courts. Last season he finished 12-9 on the surface, and had disappointing outings in both Grand Slams, going out in the 3rd round in Australia while being a shock 1st round loser at the US Open.
Head to Head
The two players have met on 5 occasions, and it is Wawrinka who has the surprise 4-1 lead.
The last meeting in Chennai was their first on the hard courts, and as mentioned, Cilic won in straight sets, both tie breakers.
Prediction
Marin Cilic is going to have to up his game considerably if he is to have a real impact in this tournament. He finished at around 3am on Wednesday morning in his last match and it will be tough for him to have recovered fully for this match.
Stanislas Wawrinka has moved through this tournament with ease at the moment and this is his first real test so far. He will be hoping to reverse the result from Chennai and will know that he has the game to match up well with Cilic.
This is going to be another tough scrap for Cilic and I have a feeling that it will be the Swiss man to go through.
Stanislas Wawrinka 7-6, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6
The Pick :
Stanislas Wawrinka 7-6, 4-6, 6-4, 7-6
