France’s Richard Gasquet vs. Sergei Bubka of Ukraine: Dubai Tennis Championships Preview
Richard Gasquet of France will take on Sergei Bubka of Ukraine today, on Day 3 of the Dubai Tennis Championships 2011. The second round tie will start at 2:00 pm UAE standard time and will be a center court feature.
Both the players are unseeded, but while Gasquet had direct entry into the tournament, Bubka had to fight through the qualifiers to get here.
The Frenchman, who is the current world no.28, out-ranks his opponent who is world no. 342 at the moment. As such, the 24 year old from Beziers is heavily slated to come out on top in the encounter.
Gasquet was featured on the cover of the French Tennis Magazine aged 9. His game is widely considered to be technically perfect and his single handed backhand is possibly the most beautiful shot on display in the game right now. Yet he is only 28th
in the world and has only been up as high as No.7 in the rankings. His trophy cabinet consists of 6 ATP titles and 8 runners-up shields. Considering the fact that his game is considered technically superior to players such as Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray,
this is a disappointing tally indeed. His lone singles grand slam semi-final appearance came in the 2007 Wimbledon and he has since failed to repeat the feat.
The high point of Gasquet’s career came at the 2004 French Open, when he won the mixed doubles event with compatriot Tatiana Golovin. The Frenchman has since been inconsistent in his performances.
With injuries and confidence issues aplenty, Gasquet will probably never live up to his potential. However, his second round tie against Bubka should not be much of a problem for him.
Sergei Bubka has only played 15 matches in a tournament’s main draw his entire career. He is the same age as Gasquet and has never ranked higher than 176th in the world at any point in his career. He has no titles and no final appearances. He
advanced to the second round of the Dubai Open, after Ivan Ljubijcic retired hurt after a set.
Prediction: A win for Richard Gasquet is probable in the second round tie at the Dubai Tennis Championships 2011.
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