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ATP Marseille: Semifinal Predictions

By Nate Slaymaker

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ATP Marseille: Semifinal Predictions

Gael Monfils and Gilles Simon will be happy to have made it through to the semifinals in a tournament in front of their home country crowd. Roberto Bautista Agut solidified his seeding as the only top 4 seed to reach this stage. Sergiy Stakhovsky pulled off the upset of the tournament in taking down Stan Wawrinka. Wawrinka was on fire this year, but Stakhovsky halted his streak in a grueling three setter. Which of these men will face off in the championship? Read on and comment with your thoughts.

Find the semifinal schedule here.

Gael Monfils (FRA) vs Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP)

Sergiy Stakhovsky pulled off the upset of the tournament in taking down Stan Wawrinka.

Monfils always turns on his flair for the French crowd. That has given him differing results. It is evident that Monfils has the talent to reach and stay well inside the top 20 in the game. Perhaps this week is a sign that his mental stability and strategy is coming into form as he ages.

Monfils’ strengths are his speed, superb defense, and an ability to hit a winner from anywhere on the court. If he decides to move a bit closer to the baseline and tries to take control of the point, he will be more successful. It will not be enough to hang back and wait for a mistake or come up with the amazing shot.

Bautista Agut is making a name for himself. He had the toughest road to this semifinal appearance, taking out two dangerous youngsters in Vasek Pospisil and Dominic Thiem. He likes the hard courts and will look to take advantage of Monfils’ tendency to stay back well behind the baseline by hitting with power and going for the angles.

Monfils has beaten Baustista Agut both times they have played, including last week in Rotterdam. Two tight sets there both went to the Frenchman. Baustista Agut will be looking exact revenge for that close loss. The crowd will eat up Monfils dramatic style and root it on. Monfils will thrive on it and make the smart plays when needed to make it two wins over the Spaniard in as many weeks.

Prediction: Monfils

Gilles Simon (FRA) vs. Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR)

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Simon is quietly putting up a strong year. He reached the quarters in Montpellier and the semis in Rotterdam, where he took out Andy Murray. He now is in the semifinal again and looks to continue to improve his No.17 ranking.

Simon is not a player that overpowers you with any particular shot or strategy. His is just very good and very consistent. Some might compare him to David Ferrer in that he has that never say die attitude. Opponents may believe that they are playing better that Simon, but when they look up at the scoreboard, he will be in the match or leading.

Stakhovsky pulled off a major upset to be in this position. Wawrinka was on a roll and looked unstoppable. The three set win is quite impressive.

Similar to Simon, Stakhovsky is nothing to scoff at. He plays a big game and will look for the winner against the pesky Simon. Stakhovsky needs to be on his game and see his big shots falling deep in the court to have a shot.

Simon leads the career head to head 2-0, but the two have not played since 2011. After pulling off a big upset, it is often hard to amp up the energy to continue the run, especially when the whole crowd will be against you. Expert Simon to win, setting up the all-France championship.

Prediction: Simon

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