Mercedes Cup: Men’s Singles Players

As with every year at the Mercedes Cup, the top clay-court players of the ATP Tour will gather in Stuttgart to contest the first clay court event following the Wimbledon Championships.

There are literally dozens of young stars out there who have learnt their trade on the red clay of Europe and South America, and these players will come head-to-head on the red clay of Weissenhof in July 2009.

2008 winner Juan Martin del Potro, David Ferrer, winner at Stuttgart in 2006, Gaston Gaudio, runner-up on three occasions, France’s Richard Gasquet, Chilean Fernando Gonzalez and Juan Monaco of Argentina are just a few Mercedes Cup men’s singles players who have the ability to clinch the title at Weissenhof.

Controversial Russian, Nikolay Davydenko and David Nalbandian, one of the few men to down the world number one, Roger Federer, have also proven their prowess on clay, as too has Jose Acasuso, runner-up in 2006, but it has to be said that there is one man who stands head and shoulders above the rest, and that is Rafael Nadal.

He is the undisputed ‘King of Clay’, he holds the record for the longest winning streak on clay – an unbelievable 81 consecutive matches, has claimed three consecutive titles at the French Open, and boasts a career clay win/loss record of 133-13! It’s going to take someone really special to subdue the rampant ‘Rafa’.

Mercedes Cup: Men’s Singles Player Profiles

1. David Ferrer is a particularly dangerous clay court player, and he began the 2008 season ranked as the number five player in the world. He was runner-up to Rafael Nadal for a second consecutive year at the 2009 Torneo Godó in Barcelona, Spain,  to date has claimed five ATP World Tour 250 Series wins, three of which were on clay.
2. Gaston Gaudio won the French Open in 2004, and to date he has claimed eight ATP tour wins, as well as the 2009 Tunis Open, all of which were on clay!
3. Richard Gasquet was runner-up at the 2008 Mercedes cup. He made it through to the semi-finals at Wimbledon in 2007, and has a clay win/loss record of 42-30. He could be facing a two year ban due to testing positive for cocaine after the 2009 Miami Masters.
4. Fernando Gonzalez reached the finals of the 2007 Australian Open, only to be beaten by Roger Federer. He has eleven ATP Tour wins including the 2009 Movistar Open, eight of which were on clay.
5. Juan Monaco has three ATP Tour wins, all of which were on clay. He reached the fourth round at the 2007 French Open as well as the quarterfinals of the Rome Masters in 2009.
6. Nikolay Davydenko is currently ranked number eleven in the world. He has reached the semi finals at the French Open, the US open and the Tennis Masters Cup. He won the 2008 Warsaw Orange Open, and boasts a further 12 career wins, 7 of which were on clay.
7. David Nalbandian won the 2005 Tennis Masters Cup, defeating Roger Federer in a marathon five-setter. He has a further 10 career wins, including victories over Rafael Nadal, Nikolay Davydenko, and for a second time, Roger Federer. He is currently ranked #15.

For odds and betting tips on 2009 Mercedes Cup men’s singles players take a look at our betting tips page and for more in-depth information on tennis betting refer to our Mercedes Cup betting guide.