Former champion Ivan Ljubicic takes on Nicolas Renavand for a place in the last eight.
Ljubicic is not the greatest fan of the summer hard court swing, having always struggled physically in the brutal heat of the North American summer and no one will be happier about the start of the indoor season than the big Croatian.
Ljubicic showed how dangerous he remains indoors last autumn, reaching the Montpellier final and the 2005 Metz champion cannot be underestimated this week. Given he’s only played two tournaments since Wimbledon it’s hard to know what to expect from Ljubicic who could be set for a fascinating quarter-final against Philipp Kohlschreiber.
Renavand came through the qualifying and has already played three matches on the surface this week. He’s only ranked 355 but he has a cannon of a first serve and took out Tobias Kamke 7-5, 6-4 in the opening round.
Expect Ljubicic to be a little rusty at first but his experience in the tiebreaks should see him get the job done.
