The Picks on clay in Monte-Carlo Masters: Thursday, April 13

Alexander Zverev
Mal Taam/MALTphoto

Daniil Medvedev over Alexander Zverev
The Russian has had a tremendous year, on the hard courts, but now he has to stay very aggressive on the clay. Most of the time, Medvedev can rally, side to side, and wait until he has a chance to nail on the lines. However, on clay, it is clear that you have to be patient for a long, long time.

The German Zverev is gradually back, on the court, as the No. 2  became hurt, he had to stay for a while. Just like with Medvedev, Zverev almost won the 2020 U.S. Open, but he could not do it. Zverev can be very steady, and also, he can crush the ball with his forehand and his backhand. Mentally, he is fragile, so if he wants to go back into the top five, he has to measure up.  Zverev will continue to play better, gradually, yet Medvedev is right there, who wants to be No. 1 this season. Medvedev will defeat Zverev in three, brutal sets.

Novak Djokovic over Lorenzo Musetti
The Italian appears to be  playing a decent match, given that this year, he has been mediocre, at best. The 19-year-old did throw in some terrific contests in 2022, but then he went down, fast. Against the No. 1 Djokovic, Musetti has to play almost perfectly to upset him. The Serbian can do almost everything, but his forehand can miss it during the rallies. His backhand is super steady, and his return is phenomenal. It will be a huge opportunity, to upset Djokovic, but Musetti is still not ready to reaching into the top 10, yet. Djokovic will win in two, hard sets.

TWO OTHER QUICK PICKS
Matteo Berrettini will upset Holger Rune in three sets, as they are both struggling, but the Italian wants to rise, ASAP. … Hubert Hurkacz has had a pretty good year, but on the clay, he cannot handle it, yet. Therefore, Jannik Sinner will win it,in two sets over Hurkacz as he has played amazing at Indian Wells and Miami. Mr. Rising.

Matt’s yesterday picks

Correct: Holger Rune over Dominic Thiem
Stan Wawrinka over Taylor Fritz

Matt’s current week picks

3 out of 6: 50% correct

Sebastian Korda wins: ‘Having a new motto of, positive energy’

Sebastian Korda
Mal Taam/MALTphoto

Sebastian Korda was cruising and looked like he was about to win. He was ahead in the fifth-set tiebreak versus Hubert Hurkacz and he was up 7-3. But then he began nervous, and he made four errors in a row. He could have lost it right there. But all of a sudden, he locked in again, and knew that he could slam the ball at the right time. He did, and he won it, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 1-6, 7-6(7). He was finally overjoyed.

“Maybe nerves got a little bit to me,” Korda said. “He stopped missing a little bit more. Came closer to the line. And I made some easy mistakes, and he took advantage of that.”

But not for long. Over the past five years, the American could look pretty good, but then he collapsed a lot. His father, Petr, won the 1998 Australian Open, and he could run all day. Plus, he could move forward, even into the net. But Sebastian needs more time. His forehand and backhand are powerful, but his serve, his return and net game, aren’t quite good enough. But he worked hard, mentally, and now, he is much more mature.

“It was difficult but I’m very happy with the way I kind of just stayed down, kept going through it,” he said. “Throughout this whole year, I haven’t had one negative thought, whether it’s waiting for transportation to go to the courts, whether it’s eating lunch, whether it’s doing anything. That’s one of the biggest things is just having a new motto of, positive energy is more positive than negative energy. As soon as you get something negative, it can take you the opposite direction. Anything that happens, just thinking in the most positive possible way, just going forward.”

Now he is in the quarters at a Grand Slam for the first time. Obviously, he is confident. But in the second weeks of the Slams, you have to face the talented players. He realizes he would back off when the match is tight.

“I think I’ve had a tough match with Rafa [Nadal], serving for it a couple times. Match point with [Novak] Djokovic. I think that really helped me, especially in the last match with Medvedev, closing out that tiebreaker,” Korda said. “Then today as well. I think all those little moments that I’ve gone through, learning from them, staying patient, staying positive, going through the process I think have really helped me going forward.”

Korda will play Karen Khachanov, a player who showed a lot of potential a few years ago. The last time they played the Russian beat Korda 10-8 in the fifth set at Wimbledon. This will be a tossup.

How about Stefanos Tsitsipas, who advanced after he survived Jannik Sinner 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3. He could have lost, but he kept on trunking. He was composed.

It was a bit of a stunner when Jiri Lehecka upset Felix Auger-Aliassime in four sets. Apparently, Lehecka is super steady, and he will snap the ball when he had to.

Jelena Ostapenko won 2018 Roland Garros and then she almost disappeared. She is a huge server, from both sides, and she goes for it immediately. But she can hit it way too long. Time and time again.

She just beat Coco Gauff and, as she said, she finally has became more thoughtful, on the court.

“My life changed a lot [after winning Roland Garros], so I needed a few years to really get used to what happened because I was really young,” Ostapenko said. “I was 19 and then turned 20. I always knew and believed in my game. If I play well, I can beat almost anyone. I was trying to work more on my consistency, especially in the preseason. Yeah, just to step on the court and play my game.”

In the quarters, Ostapenko will play Wimbledon champ Elena Rybakina, who is 2-0 over the Latvian. Ostapenko is the favorite, but not by much.

Once again, Jessica Pegula won a fine match, advancing over Barbora Krejcikova. She made few errors, and she also nailed her forehand and backhand. She has a real chance to reach into the semis for the first time at the Slams.

“It feels like there’s still a long ways to go, to be honest,” Pegula said. “I look at the draw you have Rybakina who won Wimbledon last year, you have Vika [Azarenka] who does really well here, Caroline [Garcia] won the [ATP] championships. It doesn’t really feel like I’m the highest left, even though I guess that’s a cool stat.”

She will face against Azarenka, who won this tournament twice but that is a long time ago. They have met four times and have split. Azarenka is a huge hitter from both sides, but her serves can be spotty. Still, she is very confident.

“I’m so happy I was able to manage it. At the beginning of the year there were a couple of very close matches that didn’t turn my way, so I’m very happy that I took my chances,” Azarenka said.