ATP Cincinatti

By Nishant Joshi

Sam Querrey has been having a strange time of it lately - having taken down ATP Washington, he is still playing pretty poorly and without the support of the North American crowd you'd have to wonder just how sloppy he'd be. The standard of player he's been facing has been pretty poor overall, and he's been able to take advantage of this just by remaining more solid than his opponents. Facing Phillipp Petzschner, the big-serving German, you'd have to expect at least one or two tie-breaks and this match will be decided on a handful of points. Lay Querrey 2-0.

Alexandr Dolgopolov is a player to watch - he's capable of playing some outrageous shots at times, and if he keeps his head, there's no reason why he can't start winning titles as he matures. He is certainly one of the most talented all-round players on tour, and has a game to suit all surfaces. He faces David Ferrer in the first round, and Ferrer is a bit short at 1.4. Dolgopolov will be able to hammer his huge forehand and cause Ferrer all sorts of problems here. However, Ferrer is by far the mentally stronger of the two, and Dolgopolov has shown lapses in the past. Lay 2-0 Ferrer.

Juan Monaco is coming back from a four-month lay-off due to a wrist injury, and will take on Thiemo de Bakker in his first match back. Monaco will always give it his best shot, but considering it's his first match back, on a surface he doesn't prefer, 1.4 on de Bakker is the bet.

Mikhail Youzhny takes on Richard Gasquet in what should theoretically be a tight game on paper, but when you consider that Gasquet is still feeling the effects of a shoulder injury, and has now lost in the first round of six hard court tournaments in a row...Youzhny is the bet.

Nicolas Almagro plays Stanislas Wawrinka in what should be a very tight match. For me, this match is close to 50/50, so value on Almagro is huge @ 2.58. Almagro is one of the most consistently under-rated players on hard court, whereas Wawrinka is one of the most over-rated.

Radek Stepanek has been poor since coming back from injury, and has lost in straight sets to both Fognini and Chiudinelli in his last two matches. He has now lost his last 5 ATP hard court matches in a row, and Serb Viktor Troicki can take advantage.

NJ's Bets:

Lay Querrey 2-0 - 3pts @ 2 (Betfair)

Lay Ferrer 2-0 - 4pts @ 2.14 (Betfair)

Back de Bakker - 5pts @ 1.4 (Betfair)

Youzhny to beat Gasquet - 4pts @ 1.57 (Betfair)

Almagro to beat Wawrinka  - 3pts @ 2.58 (Bwin)

Troicki to beat Stepanek - 3pts @ 1.5 (Stan James)

Gulbis/Youzhny/de Bakker treble - 3pts @ 2.44 (VCBet)

Nishant Joshi