HAMBURG NEWS & NOTES
*Krawietz-Puetz are back seeking an unprecedented third straight title in Hamburg. The Germans won last year’s titles as the two seeds over (3)Reboul/Roger-Vasselin in straight sets. They were heavy favorites in that match at 1.46 (-217). In 2023, they were seeded third and defeated (4)Gille-Vliegen in straights as 1.49 (-204) favorites. The last time an underdog won the final in Hamburg was 2021 when Puetz-Venus were 2.32 (+132) over Krawietz-Tecau.
*Hamburg is back to being normal with just four seeded pairs this year after having eight seeds last year for some reason. Only one of the top four seeds failed to get out of the opening round in 2024 with (4)Ebden-Peers losing to Germans Frantzen-Jebens. The match was basically priced out as a toss-up, so it wasn’t really an underdog win per say. Three of the four top seeds made it through to the semifinals last year. That was a bit different than previous runs with four of the last five trips to Hamburg seeing multiple unseeded pairs in the final four. We’ve still seen all-seeded finals however in three of the last four years.
*As far as actual underdog wins, there were just three in 2024 out of the 15 matches played. The two largest scores came in round one at 3.17 (+217) and 3.45 (+245). The other dog win came in the semifinals at 2.38 (+138) when Reboul-ERV upended top seeds Krajicek-Ram. The lack of underdog wins has been nothing new in recent times here with 2021 being the highest total recently with five of the 15 matches going to underdogs.
*There hasn’t been a set pattern in digging out those dog wins, but the one place that does seem to house the biggest hits more often is round one. Since 2020, there have been three hits at 4.00 (+300) or better in the opening round and two at 3.00 (+200) or better in that same round. If you’re looking big, look early.
*Super tie breaks were limited in 2024 with four of 15 matches needing the extra frame. Two of those came in round one and two more in the quarterfinals. That was actually UP from just two STBs in 2023. Over the last five years, 2020 and 2022 were the best runs for super tie break matches with five each those years. Those accounted for one-third of the matches played those years with round one housing four each of those two years. Like the hunt for big underdogs, it may pay to look earlier rather than later in Hamburg.
*Hamburg will feature some upper tier talent in the draw with pairs hoping to gain momentum heading to Roland Garros. Heliovaara-Patten are the top seeds with the defending champs, Krawietz-Puetz, seeded second. The slumping Italians Bolelli-Vavassori are seeded third and arrive with losses in four of their last five openers. Their last four losses have all come in super tie breaks. Mektic-Venus slip in as the final seeds. Four of their last seven matches have gone to super tie breaks on clay. They have lost their opener in two of four tournaments played on this Euro clay court swing.
THE UNSEEDED MENACES
Here’s a closer look at the unseeded pairs who could be a threat to make a deep run this week in Hamburg.
Goransson-Verbeek
They’re in the Mektic-Venus quarter, which for me, keeps the draw open for an unseeded pair to move through. These two are an obvious look after winning the titles in Munich a few weeks back. They didn’t fare as well in Madrid or Rome, but this draw looks much more workable for them to make some more noise. They get Molteni-Romboli, a one-off pair for the week, in round one. They could wind up being a tough opponent, but we’ll have to see how much chemistry they have early on.
Cash-Glasspool
After some time off due to injury, these two are back together in Hamburg. They already showed their prowess on clay in making the Monte-Carlo final earlier in the Spring. The draw is tough against the Italians, Bolelli-Vavassori, but given their struggles there could be room for the early upset. And lest we forget, in spite of not having a number next to their names, this is the #3 team in the year-end race. They are formidable.
Salisbury-Skupski
You have to take a guess which version of the Brits is going to show up, but two of their last three tournaments on clay have provided big time runs. This past week, they made the semifinals in Rome. And in late April, they made the Barcelona final. Around those two, they were knocked out in round two in both Monte-Carlo and Madrid. The key question is whether or not they can keep up with the best of the best. They ran roughshod over Granollers-Zeballos in Rome, but outside of that, they have not beaten a top tier team. They could see that in their way in Krawietz-Puetz if they want to get as far as another semifinal
Harrison-King
After a rough start on clay with three straight opening losses, the Americans have seemingly put things together. I was a bit hesitant on their chances in Rome with the conditions being slower than the ones that aided their semifinal run in Madrid. Making the quarterfinals in Rome alleviated some of that worry with the end game coming via a 7-5, 6-4 loss to Arevalo-Pavic. It’s boom or bust for them with Krawietz-Puetz to start.
ONE AND DONE WATCH
Even though we have some of the top notch teams in the ATP involved this week, I don’t think it means they’re all safe from early trouble. This smaller draw has some tremendous depth to it in the unseeded field.
(1)Heliovaara-Patten
Listen, this is one of the most consistent teams of 2025. They’ve made the semifinals or finals in seven of the ten tournaments played so far. They also have not lost an opener since their first match of the season! So am I daft for including them on the list? Perhaps, but a matchup against Gille-Zielinksi isn’t going to be easy. They have been a menace against the top tier like Arevalo-Pavic (1-1), Krawietz-Puetz (0-3) and Bolelli-Vavassori (0-1). What you notice is the lack of wins however, but they have driven that trio to four super tie breaks/final sets in losses. I don’t expect things to be easy for the two seeds.
(2)Krawietz-Puetz
The two-time defending champs will of course have the crowd on their side, but they will also have Harrison-King across the net in round one. You’ll probably know quickly if they’re in trouble or not. During their consecutive title runs, they’ve won all eight matches in straight sets. Their last loss in Hamburg was their first in 2017, a super tie break loss. Six of their 13 matches on clay have gone to super tie breaks and Harrison-King have only been beaten down in one of their five openers on clay. The other four saw them win two and lose two in super tie breaks. Expect a competitive match in this one.
(3)Bolelli-Vavassori
This truly won’t be an upset if Cash-Glaspool pull off the win. The Italians have lost four straight matches coming, with all four going to super tie breaks. It suggests that they’re obviously close to turning things around, but also that the confidence to finish matches might not be there in this losing skid. They did beat Cash-Glasspool 7-6, 7-6 in Rotterdam earlier in the year. Their downward spiral commenced after that tournament. Since winning Rotterdam, six of their nine matches have gone to super tie breaks with five of those ending in losses.
(4)Mektic-Venus
They’ll get a qualifier in round one. You may think that makes an easier opener for the seeds, but they could wind up seeing Arends-Johnson who are the top seeds in qualifying. That would be the toughest match I think they could see, so monitor the draw to see who winds up opposite of them in round one. If it’s Arends-Johnson, keep in mind that they are 11-5 on clay and won the titles in Barcelona.
DRAW PREVIEW
TOP HALF
The first quarter with (1)Heliovaara-Pattten may wind up being another straight forward trip to the semifinals, but there is enough danger here that I pause for a second on that thought. The opener with Gille-Zielinski may be the critical match in getting out of this quarter. I mentioned earlier that Gille-Zielinksi have been pests, but have come up short too often against the top pairs in the ATP World Tour. That might be the case again here, but I think getting the one seeds first up might be beneficial to facing them farher into the tournament. The other match opposite of this pits Americans Lammons-Withrow against German wild cards Engel-Rehberg. Don’t sleep on the Germans whose first dose of each other came in Munich when they they got through qualifying into the main draw. Round one? They beat Granollers-Zeballos. Lammons-Withrow come in on a five match losing skid, including four straight opening match losses. I wouldn’t sleep on the Germans grabbing a win on home soil in the main draw.
The second quarter is interesting with Mektic-Venus as the seeds. That pairing has gone 12-11 so far in 2025. Thirteen of those matches have ended in super tie breaks, so always keep an eye on that with these two. They’re waiting for a qualifier to be slotted in against them in round one. Again, keep an eye on Arends-Johnson in qualifying. If that pair makes this spot, an upset could be brewing. Mektic-Venus are 3-4 on clay with two opening match losses. The other match in this quadrant features Goransson-Verbeek against Molteni-Romboli. Goransson-Verbeek have the regular reps advantage, but we know both Molteni and Romboli are solid doubles pros who can win with a variety of partners. Molteni played switched it up to play with Vavassori at the Turin Challenger last week. They made the semifinals. Romboli will be playing with his 6th partner of 2025. Most recently, it’s been a solid partnership with JP Smith with a semifinal run at Indian Wells followed by a title run on clay in Houston. Although I do like Goransson-Verbeek mostly, I will not be shocked if Molteni-Romboli have a good chemistry together and grab the win instead.
There is a world where no seed makes the semifinals in this half. Mektic-Venus are by far the shakier team by most accounts. I think for Heliovaara-Patten it’s about that opener. If they ease past Gille-Zielinski, then I’d be surprised if they fell short of the final. Gille-Zielinski are a deep dark horse because of playing the #1 seeds first, but they’re capable. I’d also keep eyes on that Goranssson-Verbeek vs Molteni-Romboli match. The winner there could well figure into the semifinal stage of this half.
My Favorite: Heliovaara-Patten
My Sleeper: Molteni-Romboli
BOTTOM HALF
(3)Bolelli-Vavassori have arguably the toughest opener. Remember, when the Italians were in form the first two months of the season, they edged Cash-Glasspool in two tie breaks en route to the Rotterdam titles. I thought home cooking in Rome could ignite the Italians last week, but that failed. They aren’t getting crushed here lately, they’ve just had trouble getting over the finish line in tight matches. Maybe Cash-Glasspool not having played for a few weeks helps? The other match in this quarter pits Murray-Ram against another German wild card in Mies-Zahraj. Murray-Ram have been competitive, but struggling to grab the win. They’re just 1-5 as a pair this year, but four of those losses have come in super tie breaks. Mies is in off his best result of the season, a Challenger title alongside Vega Hernandez in Oeiras. Zahraj has been mainly a Futures and Challenger guy, so it’s going to be interesting to see if there’s anything to this duo. This really looks like a spot that Murray-Ram should take advantage of and grab a rare win. I don’t think it’s a stunner to say the survivor between Bolelli-Vavassori and Cash-Glaspool seem to be the favorite to advance.
The final quarter houses the defending champs, (2)Krawietz-Puetz. The Germans have been solid during the clay swing at 9-4 with a final in Munich and a semifinal in Madrid as their standout results. I think the loss to Doumbia-Reboul in the Rome quarters seemed a bit shocking, but when the French pair followed up by knocking off Heliovaara-Patten, that got the loss out of the category of being a bad one. Harrison-King figure to be a challenge in round one, but the Germans have been excellent at avoiding early exits. They’ve only lost their opener once in 2025 out of nine tournaments played. Krawietz-Puetz may lose their first set in Hamburg in two years, but I do think they will survive the Americans. Guinard-Nys will battle Salisbury-Skupski in the other first round match in this quarter. The Brits had a nice run in Rome with a solid win over a red hot Granollers-Zeballos as the highlight in their semifinal finish. Guinard and Nys are pairing for the first time.
There is plenty of unseeded danger lurking in the bottom half that could keep one or both seeds from being in the semifinal mix. Krawietz-Puetz are going to be the odds-on favorites as well they should be considering their success in Hamburg. I think their route has some bumps in it, but bumps that can be navigated. At this point, it would be more surprising to see Bolelli-Vavassori win than lose. One of these weeks, they’ll probably put it together. I’m avoiding being THAT GUY this week after being THAT GUY last week in Rome. Cash-Glasspool could take advantage of the teams lacking confidence in this quarter to get themselves deep in the tournament. If it sets up for Krawietz-Puetz to play Cash-Glasspool, the Brits have won the last time after losing the first clash back in January at the Australian Open. The last win was a 6-4, 6-2 smash job over the Germans in Monte-Carlo. I think Harrison-King would be my longer shots to look at in this half even with their harsh draw.
My Favorite: Cash-Glasspool
My Sleeper: Harrison-King
CLOSING TIME
No one will fault anyone for backing Krawietz-Puetz after winning here the last two years. That said, this might be their most difficult draw in Hamburg. For me, I’m looking past the defending champs and focusing on Heliovaara-Patten as the favorites. Their draw is a bit nicer, yet this is also a team that has not made a final since March. The deep runs are nice, but I think they need a trophy to up the confidence heading to Paris. If they pull it off, they would be the first #1 seeds in Hamburg to win since Dodig-Pavic back in 2017. I’m taking my other shot on my boys from Britain, Cash-Glasspool. It’s been a month since they last paired, so that’s a bit of a concern. Still, I like the consistency they have shown and if you’re going to work around a tough team like Bolelli-Vavassori, this is probably the time to do it.
PIG PIX
Heliovaara-Patten
Cash-Glasspool
DOUBLES TOURNAMENT PREVIEWS & PICKS 