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Kohlschreiber had a poor start to the year losing 3 matches at the Hopman Cup, but then found some good form, |
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reaching the semi final in Auckland and winning a set off Nadal in the 3rd round in Melbourne. |
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Although he sometimes lets himself down in the mental department he's a very talented all-court player with a good
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serve, volleys and very dangerous ground strokes. |
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Rajeev Ram in contrast is a serve-volley player with a far more limited game who is not so good from the back of the |
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court. |
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Last week he reached the semi-final in Johannesburg where he benefited from the high altitude. |
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He was also surprise winner at the grass-court event in Newport last year and these results have pushed up his |
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ranking to a far higher level than I feel it should be. |
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He seems to enjoy unusual conditions but at a regular indoor hard-court event like this one (San Jose) he is simply |
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a far inferior player than Kohlscheiber. |
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On indoor hard-courts both players have struggled for form lately, but I'm not particularly worried about |
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Kohlschreiber's losses at the Hopman Cup. |
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His defeats against Murray and Andreev are insignificant in comparison to Ram's recent losses to Alberto Martin |
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(119), David Guez (204) and Rohan Bopanna (416). |
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We can also look to Kohlschreiber's final appearance in Metz last year (lost to Monfils in 3 sets) if we want
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conformation of his ability on this surface. |
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Ram will almost certainly be somewhat fatigued from last weeks event and a long flight while Kohlschreiber has had
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plenty of time to prepare. He'll be aiming to break into the top 20 this year and should give Ram no opportunities |
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tomorrow night. |
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Paddy Power
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