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  • BCR Open Romania preview

    9/9/08 8:13 AM | Ricky Dimon
    - Just because the U.S. Open is over does not mean the tennis season is over. In fact the BCR Open Romania is already underway. Richard Gasquet, Gilles Simon, and Ernests Gulbis are among those in search of a title.

    With no dominant force in the field, the BCR Romania Open is wide open. The title is there for the taking and a host of contenders have a chance to step up and rise to the occasion. Defending champion and No. 2 seed Gilles Simon has a tough first-round matchup against Evgeny Korolev, but other than that his draw looks favorable for a repeat. Simon’s nearest seed, No. 7 Marcel Granollers, is already out of the tournament at the hands of Potito Starace.

    Fourth-seeded Paul-Henri Mathieu and No. 8 seed Jose Acasuso will be looking to deny Simon a second-straight appearance in the title match. Romanian hope Victor Hanescu, last year’s runner-up, is also in the bottom section.

    The top half of the draw, however, is absolutely loaded; so much for Richard Gasquet reaping any benefits from his No. 1 seeding. The Frenchman has Oscar Hernandez in round one; he should ease through that even though the Spanish veteran enjoys clay immensely. Gasquet, however, could meet talented Latvian Ernests Gulbis—seeded for the first time in an ATP event at No. 5—in the quarterfinals.

    Clay-court guru Nicolas Almagro and Carlos Moya appear to be on a collision course for the quarterfinals in the second part of the top half. Almagro, though, first must navigate his way through what might be the most intriguing opening-round showdown. The third-seeded Spaniard is going up against qualifier Somdev Devvarman on Tuesday. Devvarman, out of the University of Virginia by way of India, is the two-time reigning NCAA singles champion and he won his first four events (Challengers and Futures tournaments) following college. He also reached the quarterfinals of the Legg Mason Classic last month.

    While a handful of players in the top half have the talent to go all the way, Simon could be sitting pretty for a repeat. He was on fire earlier this summer (especially in Indianapolis and Toronto) and he might be able to sit back and watch people beat each other up elsewhere in the draw as he eases through.

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