Fading Del Potro tomorrow

[w@lt]

I hope the guy can get healthy and get back to playing well, but it's hard to expect much from him his first match back since last February. Even he said "It’s very difficult when you start basically, because you see all the players playing harder than me and playing really well. I’ve been practising with some players, and they beat me very easily during the practice."

Sergiy Stakhovsky +130

[Vinnie Paz]

Damn he actually said that

[GoBlue77]

Guy set u up. He always downplays his chances. He will.prob win

[matt1216]

It's Stak! Need I say More?

[Snowball]

hmm. i wonder if del Potro would have a chance to beat Stak with one arm.
it's possible. Potro says his wrist hurts a little when he backhands. But he
overcame surgery on his right wrist years ago also. The bigger question
probably isn't his wrist but his conditioning. He should win the match if
he's in shape. I wouldn't take him against someone like Ferrer or Robredo
though, someone who would work him into exhaustion.

[w@lt]

I'm sticking with Stak...From tennisinsight FWIW:

"It�s unusual for a tennis player to defend a title as a wildcard � but then Juan Martin del Potro finds himself in a situation which would be unusual for most tennis players and yet will seem very familiar to the Argentine.

For the second time in his career, the 2009 US Open champion returns from a protracted absence from the game following surgery to attempt to correct wrist tendonitis. When del Potro missed all but three events in 2010, it was his right wrist which required surgery and he had dropped from world no. 5 to world no. 36 during his absence (he would drop as low as world no. 485 before his ranking started to rebound). This time it was his left wrist which was the problem, he has been absent since Dubai in February 2014 and his ranking has dropped from world no. 5 to world no. 338 with the points he won from his victory at the Apia International Sydney in 2014 already removed from his ranking.

Del Potro�s return to competition has been postponed several times already and he is still feeling pain in his left wrist, although he has been assured that he cannot damage his wrist further by playing. �It bothers me sometimes when I hit backhands but I am trying to hit harder because I need to hit harder if I want to play this tournament. Sometimes the pain is high, sometimes it is low,� del Potro said.

�I need to do a lot of treatment every day. I do a long warmup before practice and matches, which takes a lot of time. That is my life at the moment. It will be a big challenge to play this tournament and see if I can start the season healthy and play for the whole year.�


Del Potro has made it clear that he is primarily returning for emotional reasons rather than because he feels ready to compete at a high level � which doesn�t bode well for his match against Sergiy Stakhovsky.

�It is very difficult when you start because you see all the players hitting harder than me,� del Potro said in Sydney. �I have been practising with some players and they beat me very easily. But that's what I need. I need to spend time on court. I need to think about the future. I just want to start to play tennis.�

While del Potro's return to competition will be rightly rejoiced in by the vast majority of the tennis world, it looks set to be a short-lived one, at least in Sydney. The Argentine is set for a first-round meeting with world no. 69 Sergiy Stakhovsky and while they have never played before, you would expect a healthy and match-fit del Potro to beat the Ukrainian. In this situation, the ball is firmly in Stakhovsky's court.

Ranked as high as world no. 31 in 2010 and best known for his stunning second-round defeat of Roger Federer at Wimbledon in 2013, Stakhovsky has an excellent record in Sydney, reaching the quarterfinals in 2011 and the semifinals as a qualifier in 2014, beating Carlos Berlocq, Marinko Matosevic and Julien Benneteau before falling to Bernard Tomic.

The Ukrainian has four ATP World Tour titles to his name and his Sydney showing last year was definitely the highlight of his season, although he also won two Challenger titles, reached the quarterfinals of Bucharest and the third rounds of both Queen�s and Wimbledon, defeating then-world no. 10 Ernests Gulbis on the way.

Stakhovsky prefers to serve and volley, a style which del Potro has never particularly enjoyed playing against, and with nearly a years worth of rust to shake off the Argentine is highly unlikely to be able to serve or return well enough to punish Stakhovsky when he attacks the net or pin him behind the baseline and force him to trade blows at the back of the court. Expect the Ukrainian to be the one who moves on to face top Sydney seed Fabio Fognini in the second round and just enjoy the sadly rare sight of Delpo on a tennis court."

[bruceBRUCEbruce]

Stakhovsky now at +100 at 5 Dimes

[Vinnie Paz]

My shitty local has -105/1.95

[Snowball]

he's prepping for a long haul and a loss tomorrow

this is vocal lack of confidence

went Stak in straights +218

i figure if Del Potro is strong enough to take a set
then he's too dangerous. if he's not truly ready to play
he should lose 0-2.

[jjgold]

when is this??

[Snowball]

9pm est tonight

[Demonata]

Taking Del Potro. I don't care about the coming back from injury or any of that. As long as his serve is on he will win.

[EaglesPhan36]

You guys are all nuts betting any side in this match. Have fun though!

[matt1216]

Taking Del Potro. I don't care about the coming back from injury or any of that. As long as his serve is on he will win.

Dude hes not going to be anywhere near in form. Unless Stak really takes him for granted, he should win.

[tipsadontlikehim]

I remember Llodra was a bad match up for Del Potro, should be the same with Stakhovsky if he decides to S&V all day long.

[girlscoutcookies]

lol Stakh is so fkng awful

[GoBlue77]

Guy set u up. He always downplays his chances. He will.prob win

Boom. Delpo just trolled all you, told you.

[JohnnyRudeboy]

Boom. Delpo just trolled all you, told you.

[Snowball]

STILL NOT AS BAD AS BRYANS LOSING 2 TB's to BEGEMANN HAASE
after winning 1st set 6-1 !!!!!!!!!

WTF !!!!!!!!!

[Demonata]

Easy money. Just do better research on del potro next time. He's fine guys.

[Vinnie Paz]

Fognini anyone?

[bruceBRUCEbruce]

what's the line on foggy? +200 ish?

[jtoler]

DelPo is a humble guy, he always for the most part talks kinda like this. Which is one reason why I like him so much and the fact that he's a fighter. Before the injuries I remember thinking to myself the first time I saw him play when he came out of nowhere and was winning small titles that I can see him having wrist problems in the future, he hits the ball like no one else, his forehand and backhand is all wrist. I remember when he beat Roddick on the day Roddick in his last match, he didnt want to be interviewed, was giving all praise to Roddick, very classy. He's a moneymaker for sure, that is if you can find decent odds ever.

[Snowball]

now is the time to fade him.
when he's being overpriced just because he was able to beat
a bum like Stakhovsky (which took a tb)
he's up against Fabio who is playing well and in great shape
Fabio will be able to handle Pot Roast's serve.. and cook him.

[Vinnie Paz]

Fognini 3.3/+230 and dropping

[EaglesPhan36]

Easy money. Just do better research on del potro next time. He's fine guys.

Post match presser, he is admitting pain still in the wrist especially on his backhand. Hopefully it gets stronger with more match play, but he's Def not 100% still. Betting for or against him is very dangerous early like this.

[Snowball]

Fabio gonna pound the corners. House of Pain.

[Demonata]

Post match presser, he is admitting pain still in the wrist especially on his backhand. Hopefully it gets stronger with more match play, but he's Def not 100% still. Betting for or against him is very dangerous early like this.

That is true but it's not like hes really injured significantly from what I've seen following him.

[Demonata]

Fabio gonna pound the corners. House of Pain.

I have missed like 10 bets in a row betting fognini so I just don't know.

[Snowball]

I have missed like 10 bets in a row betting fognini so I just don't know.

I've watched him play and he's looking sharp. He's been in the area a long time also.
He's a 1 seed in this tournament so that could be a motivator along with the fact that
all of his recent matches have been exhibitions or team-play showcases.. he's got to be
hungry for some real action where it matters, finally.

[jtoler]

Id trust a rat with cheese before I'd trust Foggy with my money.