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11/23/09 11:43 PM | Ricky Dimon
Looking to bounce back from defeats on opening day at the World Tour Finals, Juan Martin Del Potro and Fernando Verdasco will square off on Tuesday afternoon.
It will be the first career ATP-level meeting between Juan Martin Del Potro and Fernando Verdasco when the two World Tour Finals underdogs do battle in a crucial round-robin showdown on Tuesday. They did, however, face each other once on the Challenger circuit, with Del Potro surviving a thriller 6-7(3), 6-2, 7-6(8) on the clay courts of Spain.
Although Verdasco was already 22 years old at the time of their lone previous encounter, both men are much different players now. The Spaniard's game took off last fall when he clinched the Davis Cup title for his country, and he sustained that momentum en route to a semifinal finish at the Australian Open. Verdasco has failed to reproduce the kind of brilliance that was on display in Melbourne, but he is still enjoying an impressive 2009 campaign. The world No. 9 owns a stellar 52-23 match record and he put up a nice effort on Sunday against Roger Federer before falling 4-6, 7-5, 6-1.
Del Potro also suffered a three-set loss in his London opener, going down to Andy Murray 6-3, 3-6, 6-2. Still, it was an encouraging result for Del Potro especially compared to his recent results. After toppling Federer to win the U.S. Open, the 21-year-old Argentine was plagued by wrist and abdominal injuries and he retired from tournaments in Shanghai and Paris in addition to losing in the Tokyo first round. Overall, Del Potro is 51-15 during his best season on the ATP Tour.
Tuesday's clash looks like a toss-up, and it could come down to which man is in the best physical shape (Verdasco needs offseason foot surgery, but for now it appears to be a non-issue). All ailments being equal, however, Del Potro should be feeling slightly better after his Sunday performance. He looked fit and even though he was not at his best following an impressive second set, he was mostly a victim of Murray's great play.
Verdasco did well to take a set off Federer, but both his game and his mentality crumbled after leading 30-0 on his opponent's serve at 5-5 in the second set. As such, Del Potro in a tight three-setter is the pick.
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After watching, verdasco should've won that match, really a waste.
bolbol , 11/24/09 6:23 PM
poor verdasco! :(
mriiidula , 11/24/09 7:00 PM
JMdP has been in control from the start. Nando had only a small chance it there and he couldn't convert.
jessica4stein , 11/24/09 7:06 PM
Juan Martin Del Potro
Fernando Verdasco
Barclays ATP World Tour Finals
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I think delpo for the win in 2, he seems to be fine and verdasco won't recover from his loss.
bolbol , 11/24/09 4:41 AM