Stan Wawrinka vs Marin Cilic
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World No. 3 Stan Wawrinka faced quite the initial challenge from mercurial Frenchman Gael Monfils in his pre-quarter match, before the flighty Monfils lost steam in the final set. 2015 French Open champion Wawrinka defeated a dominant Novak Djokovic for his title then, and he’s no stranger to holding his own at tournaments.
Cilic, who has maintained his rank and fair form over the past year, has not really been in knock-out form as Wawrinka has, with the Swiss ace taking his third Grand Slam title at the 2016 US Open – again, over Novak Djokovic.
Wawrinka also made the finals at Indian Wells this year, and unlike most other players on the tour has had no struggles with injuries, consistency, or perhaps the most important of them all, confidence. With a number of top players suffering serious burnout, Wawrinka has maintained his confidence and self-belief – and that has gone a long way in ensuring his sustained level of gameplay.
The World No. 3 has defeated Cilic 11 of the 13 times the two have played each other, and the Croatian player has never been the victor on clay.
It has also been seven years since Cilic beat Wawrinka professionally; the pair most recently played each other at the ATP World Tour Finals last year, with Wawrinka winning in straight sets (both of which went to tiebreak).
A former US Open champion himself, Cilic no doubt has built up some momentum off his French Open run – but has had a relatively simple draw to his ranking and prowess, while Wawrinka has faced a more difficult tier of opponents along the way.
Neither player has dropped a set at the Open so far but given the surface and the players’ performances this season, this match will likely go to Wawrinka, even if there are tiebreaks involved.
Prediction: Stan Wawrinka to win in straight sets (with tiebreaks)
