Scouting Report: Shapovalov Leads Gstaad Field; Action In Los Cabos and Umag

  • Posted: Jul 18, 2021

There will be three ATP 250 events this week in Gstaad, Los Cabos, and Umag, with future and established stars aiming to make their mark.

Denis Shapovalov leads the field at the Swiss Open Gstaad, Cameron Norrie will look to continue his career-best season at the Mifel Open in Los Cabos and #NextGenATP star Carlos Alcaraz is pursuing a maiden tour-level title at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag.

ATPTour.com looks at what you should watch at these three events.

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FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN GSTAAD
1) Super Shapovalov: Canadian Shapovalov will compete in Switzerland off the back of a strong grass-court season, during which he made his first Grand Slam semi-final at Wimbledon. The 22-year-old is making his debut in Gstaad, where he is the top seed. Shapovalov will begin his run against wild card Johan Nikles or qualifier Vit Kopriva.

2) Bautista Agut Back For More: Former finalist Roberto Bautista Agut returns to Gstaad seeking to go one step further and win a 10th tour-level title. The Spaniard, who lost to Matteo Berrettini in the 2018 championship match, is the second seed at the ATP 250 tournament. He will face wild card Dominic Stephan Stricker or Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech in the second round.

3) Garin & Ruud In Action: Cristian Garin (5) and Casper Ruud (3) have won eight ATP Tour titles between them, and all of those victories have come on clay. This March, Garin lifted the Santiago title, while Ruud has claimed crowns in Geneva and Bastad. Both will look to add another title to their collection in Gstaad.

4) Dangerous Delbonis: Argentine Federico Delbonis enters the ATP 250 tournament high on confidence, having recorded 22 tour-level wins on clay this year. The 30-year-old has reached the semi-finals in Belgrade, Santiago and Hamburg in 2021. He also advanced to the fourth round at Roland Garros, which was his best-ever Grand Slam performance.

5) Lopez Loves Gstaad: The 39-year-old Feliciano Lopez will be competing in Gstaad for the 13th time. The Spaniard won the title in 2016 and also reached the final in 2006. He is the eighth seed and begins against Marc-Andrea Huesler.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN LOS CABOS
1) Norrie To Continue Success? Great Britain’s Norrie will aim to continue his best-ever season in Los Cabos. The 25-year is in the Top 15 in the FedEx ATP Race To Turin, having reached tour-level finals in Estoril, Lyon and at The Queen’s Club. The lefty has won 31 tour-level matches this season and is the top seed in Mexico, where he will try to lift his first ATP Tour trophy. Norrie will play Sweden’s Elias Ymer or a qualifier in his opener.

2) Isner Second Seed: John Isner is making his debut at the ATP 250 event in what is his seventh tour-level event of the season. The 36-year-old is a 15-time ATP Tour titlist, and he will try to secure his first crown since Newport in 2019. The American will face Evgeny Donskoy or Jason Jung in the second round.

3) Fritz’s Remarkable Return: Taylor Fritz made an incredible recovery to feature at Wimbledon earlier this month. The American underwent knee surgery after being taken off court at Roland Garros in a wheelchair, and returned three weeks later. Fritz, who reached the third round at the All England Club, will return to action in Los Cabos, where he advanced to the final in 2019.

4) Former Champion Querrey: American Sam Querrey returns to Los Cabos having tasted success in Mexico before. The American toppled Thanasi Kokkinakis in the 2017 final to clinch his 10th ATP Tour title. Querrey, who reached the final on grass in Mallorca in June, will attempt to find his best form in Mexico. The fourth seed opens against one of two countrymen: Brandon Nakashima or J.J. Wolf.

5) Thompson’s Debut: Australian Jordan Thompson will make his tournament debut in Los Cabos. The 27-year-old carries momentum from his run to the semi-finals in Newport, where he fell short against American Jenson Brooksby. Thompson will begin his campaign against 42-year-old Ivo Karlovic, who received a wild card.

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH IN UMAG
1) Rising Alcaraz: #NextGenATP star Alcaraz has gone from strength to strength in the past year. He broke into the Top 100 in the FedEx ATP Rankings after he became one of just seven players to win four ATP Challenger Tour trophies at 18 or under. The Spaniard, who reached a tour-level semi-final this April in Marbella, will look to claim a maiden tour-level title in Croatia. He will face a stiff opening challenge against former Top 10 star Lucas Pouille.

2) Reigning Champion Lajovic: Dusan Lajovic has fond memories of playing at the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag. The Serbian defeated Attila Balazs there in 2019 to claim his maiden ATP Tour title. The reigning champion is the second seed in Umag, where he has played in qualifying and the main draw nine times. Lajovic will open against Pablo Cuevas or Bernabe Zapata Miralles.

3) Can Ramos-Vinolas Bounce Back? Top seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas won his third ATP Tour title on clay in Estoril in May. The 33-year-old has run into a tough patch since, losing seven consecutive matches leading into Umag. But the former World No. 17 has won 165 tour-level matches on clay in his career. The other seeded player in his quarter of the draw is sixth seed Jaume Munar.

4) Krajinovic Finding Form: Filip Krajinovic recorded the third Top 10 win of his career when he defeated World No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Hamburg European Open last week. The Serbian advanced to his first final of the season in Germany, and he will compete in Umag with plenty of confidence. The third seed will play Radu Albot or Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune in the second round.

5) Brkic/Cacic Top Seeds: The top seeds in the doubles draw are Tomislav Brkic and Nikola Cacic, who won their first ATP Tour title together earlier this year in Buenos Aires. The second seeds are Pablo Cuevas and Fabrice Martin, and another team to watch is Ivan Sabanov and Matej Sabanov, who triumphed in Belgrade.

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