One of Wednesday’s most spectacular matches in the Basel tournament will take place between Belgian David Goffin and Croatian Marin Cilic, players who have produced spectacular matches over time.
David Goffin
◾️The 28-year-old Belgian player is currently in 13th place in the ATP standings, being in a visible growth of form.
◾️His season was a mediocre one until the grass season, with no notable results, both on the hard and the clay.
◾️He made two finals in the summer, on the grass in Halle and on the hard drive in Cincinnati, where he was defeated by Roger Federer, respectively Daniil Medvedev.
◾️He did excellent in the Asian season, reaching the semifinals in Tokyo, defeated by Novak Djokovic, respectively in quarters in Shanghai by Roger Federer, but his level of play was high.
Marine Cilic
◾️The Croatian player, who reached the age of 31, is currently ranked 23rd in the ATP standings, being in a decline in form lately.
◾️Compared to the rest of the seasons, this year was a rather disastrous one for Marin Cilic, the best results being the best of the Melbourne and US Open finals, respectively the quarter-finals in Madrid.
◾️In the tournament in Moscow last week he reached the semifinals, but there was quite clearly defeated by Andrey Rublev, feeling the exchange of generations easily.
🎾Direct meetings
▪️The two players have met up to now 6 times, the score being equal, 3-3, but the last 3 matches were won by Marin Cilic, the last one taking place last year, when the Croatian crossed a much more convincing form.
🎾What is the shape of the players in the last 5 matches?
- David Goffin
- Last result: 0-2 vs Humbert
- Shape: L L W W L
◽️David Goffin (# 14 ATP, 29 years old) is already a regular presence at ATP Basel, where he reached the semi-finals in 2017.
◽️At that time, he gave in to the great public favorite Roger Federer.
◽️In any case, this remains Goffin’s highest performance in this tournament, during which he reached the best and the quarterfinals in 2016 and 2015, respectively.
◽️Goffin comes after a disastrous tour of his home country.
◽️He left the competition in Antwerp from the first game, being eliminated by Humbert, at the end of just over an hour of play, score 6-3 / 6-1.
◽️Goffin played with the first service in only 59% of the cases, winning 60% of the points at this point in the game.
- Marine Cilic
- Last result: 0-2 vs Rublev
- Shape: L W W L L
◽️Marin Cilic (# 25 ATP, 31 years old) also has a fruitful tradition in Basel, even more perfect than Goffin’s.
◽️The Croatian also won the tournament in 2016, when he defeated Nishikori in the final act of the competition. In the other two appearances, Cilic stopped in the semifinals (2017) and respectively (2018).
◽️Marin Cilic did not participate in Antwerp, but comes from the Kremlin Cup.
◽️In the Russian capital, Cilic was eliminated in the semifinals, being beaten by a local tennis player, namely Rublem, who defeated him in the minimum of sets, score 7-5, 6-4.
◽️The Croatian first service did not work, playing with him in less than half of the cases.
◽️Not even the 11 aces were enough for Marin Cilic to win his own service, so he missed the final.
🎾News, analysis, statistics and progress about the 2 players.
◾️He has 36 wins and 25 defeats in 2019, of which 20 with 16 on the hard.
◾️He has no title in 2019.
◾️7 out of 11 tournaments in his career came on the hard, including the last 4, most recently in 2017, in Tokyo.
◾️He is 180 cm / 70 kg and strikes with his right hand.
◾️# 7 ATP is the best ranking of his career, achieved in November 2017.
◾️He has 21 wins and 17 defeats in 2019, of which 14 with 11 on the hard.
◾️Has no trophy in 2019.
◾️14 out of 19 tournaments from his record came on the hardest, most recently in 2016, even at Basel.
◾️He weighs 198 cm / 89 kg and strikes with his right hand.
◾️# 3 ATP is the best ranking of his career, achieved in January 2019.
Tennis Prediction of the Day David Goffin vs Marin Cilic
David Goffin is still in direct fight to get the last qualifying spot from the Champions Tournament, the Belgian going through a period more consistent than the Croatian Marin Cilic. Thus, I expect David Goffin to be in control of this match, thus gaining the qualification in the next round and staying in the race for London, while Marin Cilic is waiting for the end of the season.
Prediction Today: David Goffin
Odds: 1.60
