Analysis for Devilder-Koellerer (ATP Casablanca)

Head-to-head record 1:0

Nicolas Devilder of France will play Austrian Daniel Koellerer in the first round. Devilder is a solid claycourter who proved his ability last year during the clay season. Since 2008 French Open, Devilder has reached an incredible record of 29 wins – 3 losses on clay courts. He is a typical baseliner and he has always played his best on the slowest surface. After the clay season, Devilder started to struggle and in fact, he has won just a couple of matches since August 2008. On the other hand, most of these matches were hard court ones and Devilder has always been much weaker on fast surfaces. This year, his horrible hard court form continues but he played some solid matches on clay against sound opponents. His latest record is the reason why he is not the big favourite with bookies but we think that things may go different way on clay. His opponent will be Austrian claycourter Koellerer who plays with well-angled topspin heavy strokes, a strong two-handed backhand and fast mobility on the court. He is known for a good defense but he is one of the most inconsistent players on the circuit. He hasn’t had a bad season but last week, he showed his mental instability being absolutely demolished by Pablo Cuevas. Devilder is a slightly better player who feels best on this surface and we think he should be a bigger favourite in this match. Odds above 1.75 are worth taking for us.