3 matches are on Wednesday's card at Lincoln, and we have a pick for every one of them. The headline act: Mark Lajal against Mitchell Krueger in the round of 16. Our calls: Lajal over Krueger, Blanch over Tomic, Wolf over Johnson. As always, every pick below is graded after the fact and stays up, right or wrong.
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A spot in the next round is at stake on Wednesday, when Bernard Tomic goes up against Darwin Blanch in the Lincoln round of 32. Darwin Blanch has won 5 of the last 10. Bernard Tomic has won 4 of the last 10.
This is the first career meeting between the two, which means no head-to-head baggage on either side of the net.
On paper it's close: comparable ratings, comparable serve numbers, small margins everywhere. Little separates them; Blanch gets the nod on the finest of margins.
Pick: Blanch
Win probability: 51% Blanch · Most likely score: 2-0 (28%) · Could go long: 47% chance of a full three sets
Wednesday's Lincoln round of 16 pits Mark Lajal against Mitchell Krueger on hard. Mark Lajal is searching for form, having lost 2 in a row (6 of the last 10). Mitchell Krueger has won 4 of the last 10.
There is no history here: this is their first tour-level meeting.
The serve is where this match separates: Lajal has been winning 73.9% of first-serve points to Krueger's 69.3%, and on hard that gap compounds fast. Lajal arrives with very little recovery time. This one is close to a coin flip, and the lean toward Lajal is exactly that — a lean.
Pick: Lajal
Win probability: 51% Lajal · Most likely score: 2-0 (29%)
J J Wolf and Steve Johnson meet in the round of 16 at Lincoln on Wednesday. J J Wolf is 2-8 across recent matches. Steve Johnson has dropped 2 straight and sits at 3-7 over the last ten.
There is no history here: this is their first tour-level meeting.
Neither the serve numbers nor the ratings separate these two by much, which is why our number stays close to even. Johnson arrives with very little recovery time. Little separates them; Wolf gets the nod on the finest of margins.
Pick: Wolf
Win probability: 50% Wolf · Most likely score: 2-0 (31%)