Second round action from the ATP 250 Cordoba Open commences on Day 3. The tournament is heating up as the big names come out to play with spots in the quarterfinals up for grabs. Top-seeded Diego Schwartzman begins his quest for a maiden Cordoba title on Wedensday. The Argentinian #1 was a runner-up at this event in 2020 and will surely be keen to go one step further this year.
ATP Cordoba Day 3 Predictions
Pedro Martinez vs Juan Ignacio Londero
H2H: first meeting
Pedro Martinez required just under three hours to secure a 4-6 6-4 7-6 victory over Thiago Monteiro in the opening round. Marathon matches are becoming the norm for the Spaniard who arrived in Cordoba fresh from an epic fifth set loss to Cristian Garin in the second of the Australian Open.
Juan Ignacio Londero failed to win an ATP Tour-level main draw match in 2021. It would therefore have been a relief to the Argentine when he recorded a 6-3 6-4 opening round win over Yannick Hanfmann. Cordoba is a special city for 28-year-old, the city where he won his first and only ATP title in 2019. Things haven’t gone to plan since then, perhaps a serious revival is on the cards this week.
Whilst Londero looked strong in his opening round win over Hanfmann, the German didn’t offer the greatest resistance. A dialed-in Pedro Martinez will provide a much tougher test. A test that the Argentine is unlikely to clear, even if this match takes place at the scene of his biggest triumph. The greater consistency and discipline of Martinez is likely to prevail here.
Prediction: Martinez in 2
Daniel Elahi Galan vs Jaume Munar
H2H: First meeting
Daniel Galan continued his strong start to the clay swing and made the most of his spot in the main draw as a lucky with loser with a 7-5 6-3 win over Hugo Dellien. Galan has momentum on his side having won the Concepcion challenger event in Chile a few weeks ago. Jaume Munar advanced to the second round with a 6-4 7-5 victory over the 7th seeded Benoit Paire. Munar trailed by a break in each set but was solid enough to mount a pair of comebacks as he exploited the fragile forehand of the Frenchman.
This is a winnable matchup for both players, a good opportunity to reach a rare quarterfinal at this level. I’ll give the slight edge to Munar here. The Spaniard seems to have made some decent improvements to his game and is likely to outlast Galan from the back of the court thanks to the relentless pressure his solid style puts on opponents in these conditions.
Prediction: Munar in 3
Tomas Martín Etcheverry vs Nikola Milojevic
H2H: Etcheverry 1-0
Nikola Milojevic was an extremely lucky-loser this week. The Serb stumbled in the final round of qualifying but took Dominic Thiem’s place in the draw in the second seeds spot when the Austrian withdrew from the event. Milojevic has only won a couple of ATP main draw matches in his career; this will be his biggest opportunity to reach a maiden quarterfinal at this level.
Etcheverry advanced to the second round in Cordoba with a 2-6 6-3 6-4 win over Nicolas Jarry. Etcheverry is expected to have a slight advantage in this matchup. He won the only previous encounter the pair 7-5 6-3 at an Italian Challenger event on clay last season. Playing at home is another factor in the Argentine’s favor.
Prediction: Etcheverry in 2
Diego Schwartzman vs Juan Pablo Ficovich
H2H: First meeting.
Diego Schwartzman’s Australian summer didn’t go as planned. The Argentine suffered a shock second round exit at the Australian Open, defeated by Christopher O’Connell in straight sets. One of Schwartzman’s worst losses in recent memory. A return to form is to be expected on the Argentinian clay courts over the next couple of weeks. Schwartzman will certainly start a strong favourite against Argentinian qualifier Juan Pablo Ficovich.
Ficovich has done well to reach the second round having won a pair three set matches in qualifying before upsetting Federico Coria 7-6 6-2 in the first round of the main draw. Ficovich’s opening round win was his first ATP tour level main draw victory. Facing Diego Schwartzman will be a huge step up in opposition for Ficovich. A matchup Ficovich is unlikely to have much success in. Schwartzman gets the job done in these matchups against far less established opposition on his favorite surface.
Prediction: Schwartzman in 2
Main Photo from Getty.
