Sock – Lacko

A place in the Atlanta semifinals is at stake when home and odds favorite Jack Sock takes on Slovakian talent Lukas Lacko.

Sock said before the competition that this is one of his favorite tournaments and he loves everything about the event, feels great. He`s at home and he loves the conditions, he`s in very good form lately (reached semifinals at Newport 2 weeks ago, def. Isner, lost to Hewitt) and he was always expected to do great here. Jack delivered so far with two quick wins against A. Gonzalez and against fellow American M. Venus – not exactly top class opposition, but Gonzalez was a dangerous adversary. Sock is moving well, not making too many unforced errors and his serving was excellent, as he has yet to concede a break in this tournament.

Bet with the best odds and highest limits at Pinnacle.

Lacko was considered a big talent early in his career, but now at 27 years old he was never even close to fulfill his potential. The Slovakian had a poor season so far and entered Atlanta on the back of a miserable performance at Granby last week. His quarterfinal run this week may seem impressive, but his level of play was by no means great. Lukas defeated wildcard N. Pasha in the first round 6-1 7-5 and went on to beat Denis Istomin in 3 sets, but that was a very strange match with a very poor level of tennis. Istomin won the first set but than collapsed, he seemed injured and could not serve properly. Istomin made a late rally in the deciding set, denying my suspicions for an injury, but still lost. I`m never quick to suspect matches being fixed, I won`t say this was fixed either, but it did look very peculiar – Istomin started strong, than seemed unable to move for 1 hour, than recovered from nowhere, only to end up losing in a match with 10 (!!) service breaks and a ton of errors. Anyway, Lacko defeated an opponent that was not even at 50% of potential and could not use his main weapon properly (his serve) – Lacko did not play great, making unforced errors after every 2-3 shots.

The H2H is 0-0, the two players never met before on tour. A matchup analysis will not reveal anything spectacular worth taking into account for betting, both guys like to play aggressive tennis, Sock has a big serve as well.

The American is the better player, he is in better form and much more consistent than Lacko and he played much better tennis here in Atlanta. He`s at home and we all know Americans play great in these pre – US Open tournaments on hard court in the States. The analysis could not get any simpler and I really see no way for Lacko to realistically challenge for the win today, even if he increases his level compared to the Istomin match. Sock is very hard to break and Lacko is not the best returner in the world, while the Slovakian has a very poor 2nd serve and conceded 12 break points to a below-par Istomin, so Jack Sock should have his chances on the return. I expect this to finish in 2 sets, I can`t see Lacko coping with Sock’s level for a 40-50 minute timespan, which he would need in order to take a set. My tip is Sock to win with a 1,5 set handicap (2-0) and I`m very satisfied with the current odds at Pinnacle on this bet. Prediction: Jack Sock – Lukas Lako 7-5 6-3.

Pick: Sock (-1,5 set handicap)
Odds: 2.20 @ Pinnacle
Stake: 8
Possible profit: 9.60
Event date: 25 July