2011 ABN AMRO World Tennis: Ivan Ljubicic vs. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga – Preview
Two-time finalist here, top Croat, Ivan Ljubicic, made it to his fourth semi-final in Rotterdam on Saturday as he prepares to take on the Frenchman, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
With both players ranked inside the top 20, the match is expected to be an exciting, exhilarating affair.
Ranked 15th in the world, Ljubicic is playing in his ninth event here; sporting an impressive 17-8 career win-loss mark.
Debuting at the same venue in 2001, Ljubicic made it into the quarterfinals before losing to eventual champion, Nicolas Estude.
However, the Croat’s lucky break came in 2005 when he enjoyed a run into the finals; only to lose the title to Roger Federer. His second final disappointment came in 2007 when he lost to Russian ace, Mikhail Youzhny.
Hoping to be third-time lucky, seventh seeded Ljubicic enjoyed straight set wins in his two clashes earllier in the tournament. Dismissing Sergiy Stakhovsky and Benoit Paire, Ljubicic secured a spot for himself in the final eight.
Pitted against Cypriot, Marcos Baghdatis, Ljubicic survived a hard fought mid-match lapse to prevail 6-4, 6-7(6), 7-6(4) and make it into the final four.
Meeting the Frenchman, Ljubicic stands at a level 1-1 career head-to-head on hard courts. The pair’s last meeting had come in the 2010 Dubai event with the Croat emerging as the victor.
Although, Ljubicic enjoys his best form in the season so far, he stands at a disadvantage since Tsonga comes into the semis rested.
Talking about his match with Tsonga after his own quarterfinal match on Friday, Ljubicic said, “Jo didn’t play today so it’s a little advantage for him. I had a tough one today, so he’s definitely going to feel better physically than me tomorrow. We have very similar games, big serve and going for our shots. So I’m sure it’s going to be a very entertaining match”.
Ranked 18th in the world, Tsonga received a walkover in his quarterfinal match on Friday when his opponent, Tomas Berdych pulled out of the event because of illness.
Playing in his second year here, fifth seeded Tsonga surpassed his career best here when he made it to the semi-final round here.
He has earlier enjoyed a straight sets victory against Bulgarian qualifier, Grigor Dimitrov in his opening clash. He then moved on ahead to survive an early set scare against compatriot Michael Llodra to enjoy a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 win.
The Frenchman had debuted here in 2009 and had made his way into the quarterfinal round before losing to world number one, Rafael Nadal.
Sporting a notable 5-2 in the season so far, Tsonga is at his best after an injury plagued 2010. Playing at the season opening Doha event, Tsonga enjoyed a semi-final run, losing to eventual champion, Roger Federer.
The Frenchman had also made it into the third round of the Australian Open before being ousted by Alexandr Dolgopolov. Although a 2010 semi-finalist at the Grand Slam, Tsonga’s failure of defending his points caused a slump in his rankings.
Prediction: Although both professionals are equally matched, the odds tip slightly in Ljubicic’s favour since the Croat has more experience here. However, a rested Tsonga might give much resistance to the Croat.
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