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  • Tsonga, Youzhny square off in first-round showdown

    11/4/09 7:47 AM | Ricky Dimon
    Tsonga, Youzhny square off in first-round showdown Arguably the best matchup of the entire Valencia first round will take place on Wednesday afternoon. It features Jo-Wilfried Tsonga against Mikhail Youzhny.

    The draw at the Valencia Open was not kind to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Mikhail Youzhny. After all, they are accustomed to facing each other much later on in tournaments.

    Tsonga and Youzhny have met on two previous occasions. Their first encounter came in the quarterfinals of the 2008 Australian Open, where Tsonga prevailed 7-5, 6-0, 7-6(6). The ninth-ranked Frenchman most recently disposed of Youzhny 6-3, 6-3 just last month in the Tokyo title match.

    With Tsonga in outstanding form at the moment, he is expected to get the best of his opponent once again. Valencia's No. 3 seed is an impressive 51-18 for his 2009 campaign. Since reaching the fourth round of the U.S. Open, Tsonga has appeared in the semifinals in Bangkok, the third round at the Shanghai Masters, and the quarterfinals in Lyon to go along with his Tokyo title.

    However, the favorite cannot underestimate Youzhny, who has resurrected his career following a dismal 2008 season. A former Top 10 player, the veteran Russian is back up to No. 23 in the world thanks to some stellar play of late. In addition to his runner-up showing in Tokyo, Youzhny made it to the quarterfinals in Kuala Lumpur and won a title in Moscow. He pulled out of a second-round match last week in St. Petersburg citing a back problem, but that was most likely a precautionary move in the aftermath of his long week at the Kremlin Cup.

    While both men are dangerous on all surfaces, Youzhny would rather be playing Tsonga on a clay court. Tsonga's power i simply too much for Youzhny on any kind of fast surface, so the Russian could be in for another long day Wednesday. Some brilliant shot-making should be on display, but count on Tsonga advancing in straight sets.

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