The field is getting smaller and smaller in Roland Garros and we’re about to see it filtered again today, with the continuation of the third round of the 2016 French Open. Read our breakdown of today’s matchup between Pablo Cuevas and Tomas Berdych. You can also check out our preview of Stan Wawrinka vs. Jeremy Chardy.
The life of Pablo Cuevas is about to get harder in Paris. After defeating Tobias Kamke in the first round (3-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4)) and Quentin Halys in the second round (7-6 (7-4), 6-3, 7-6 (8-6)), Cuevas will face seven-seed Tomas Berdych later today.
Cuevas had an easy time taking care of Halys, winning 85 percent of his first serve points and 57 on second serve points. Moreover, Cuevas had 19 aces, a big jump from the 11 he had in the first round against Kamke.
While Berdych is going to be Cuevas’ toughest opponent yet, it’s not like the Uruguayan will be fazed by his higher-ranked foe. For one, he’s already defeated Berdych in the past, breezing past the Czech back in the 2015 Beijing Open, 6-4 6-4, albeit in a game played on a hard court.
That being said, Cuevas does appear to have a solid clay game to upset Berdych. He is 102-65 in his career on clay.
Beating Berdych could make Cuevas famous in his native country. A defeat, however, would be a lowlight to his 2016 French Open campaign
Betting on Tomas Berdych
It took Berdych 33 games to defeat Malek Jaziri in the second round (6-1, 2-6, 6-2, 6-4) but at least he’s headed to the third round for the sixth time in his career in Roland Garros.
Berdych, however, needs to sharpen further his first serves if he’s to get past Cuevas, an underdog but a dangerous opponent nonetheless. Berdych hasn’t put more than 56% of his first serves in play thus far in the tournament. While that’s a concern for Berdych, it can’t be denied that he’s won no less than 72% of his first serve points. He even won 82% of his first serve points against Jaziri.
Berdych is the more experienced and accomplished player in Roland Garros than Cuevas, who has yet to make it past the third round since he began participating in the French Open in 2007, so the Czech is expected to take care of business later today.
