Verdasco is a former semifinalist here.(credit:
Wikimedia)
Tomas Berdych will meet Fernando Verdasco in the fourth round of the Australian OpenIn what looks set to be one of the most exciting matches of the Australian Open, Tomas Berdych is up against Fernando Verdasco for a place in the quarterfinals. Both players are ranked inside the top ten, and both have made solid progress here. Berdych wasn’t handed the easiest draw, though he’s emerged from potentially tricky matches against Philipp Kohlschreiber and Richard Gasquet. Verdasco also faced tough opposition, in the form of Janko Tipsarevic and Kei Nishikori.
Verdasco has been in this sort of position before. The Spaniard was a semifinalist in Melbourne in 2009, and reached this stage of the competition last season. Berdych has also reached this stage in past years, but has never managed to reach the quarters.
The head to head record between these two players suggests a Berdych success. The Czech leads his hard court head to head with Verdasco 4-1 (6-4 on all surfaces), and hasn’t been beaten by the current world No. 9 on this type of surface since 2005.
The last hard court meeting between the pairing occurred last year at the Miami Masters. Berdych edged the match 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4. With this in mind, this match looks like it could go down to the wire. The winner of this contest will earn a quarterfinal showdown with either Nicolas Almagro or Novak Djokovic.
Bet & Watch on the Australian Open live online at bet365 > Live Streaming Tennis