ATP Kuala Lumpur – João Sousa vs Julien Benneteau Preview

A new ATP champion will emerge at Kuala Lumpur this Sunday, Julien Benneteau will try to avoid a ninth straight defeat in an ATP final while Portuguese João Sousa tries to be successful in first career final.

Benneteau has lost 8 finals so far in his career, the last one this year at Rotterdam against Juan Martin Del Potro. The French hasn’t been able to play his best tennis in decisive matches and this might be one of his last chances to claim an ATP trophy. Benneteau is last year’s finalist, likes to play in Indoor with solid baseline strokes and has good game around the net. Today he defeated Stanislas Wawrinka in a match where he proved to be solider from the baseline.

Sousa can become the first Portuguese player to win an ATP title, after 2010 Frederico Gil lost in Estoril Open (now known as Portugal Open) final against Albert Montanes, this will be the second time Portugal has a player at a final. João has played some outstanding tennis, after his US Open performance where he defeated Grigor Dimitrov and Jarkko Nieminen, the Portuguese player reached St. Petersburg semi-finals and is now playing Kuala Lumpur final after defeating players like Jurgen Melzer and David Ferrer.

Benneteau has a huge chance to claim a title, but the French may suffer with the pressure of 8 straight losses and the fact that he is the favorite in this match. Julien has 72% chances of success, but Sousa has proved to be a very tough opponent. Sousa’s consistency and aggressive play style may difficult Benneteau’s life and I won’t be surprised if the Portuguese could surprise once again.