Andy Murray may have battled back to book his place in the Wimbledon semi-finals but it has still prompted doubts over his chances of winning Wimbledon.
Janowicz's stats are the most impressive of anyone left in the draw, with the most aces (90) and the fastest serve (140 mph). He has won 84 per cent of the points on his first serve.
Devastating
Even more concerning is that he put in his most devastating display when the pressure ought to have been telling, producing 30 aces, 58 winners and his fastest serve in the biggest match of his career as he beat Lukasz Kubot in straight sets on Court One.
However, it is one thing pumping winners past fellow Pole, good friend and world No 134 Kubot and an another entirely doing the same against Murray, one of the game's best defenders.
Verdasco produced arguably his best performance in a number of years but still ended with the same amount of unforced errors as winners, while actually landing fewer aces than the second seed.
Murray's ability to wear down his opponents and nudge them gradually towards self-destruct mode is perhaps one of his greatest weapons, so it will be intriguing to see how the 22-year-old deals with not having it all his own way for once.
After all, there is a reason why he headed into Wimbledon with a 15-12 win to loss ratio this year, compared to Murray's 27-5.
Therefore favouritism is deservedly handed to the US Open champion, but odds of
4/1 on Janowicz prevailing, almost half the price Verdasco was offered at, acknowledge the threat.
While Murray's experience and guile should see him safely through, backing the Pole to win the first set at
5/2 could be the way to go against the notoriously slow starter.
Del Potro is actually considered the longest price of anyone to reach the final at
9/2 but enjoyed victory over Djokovic in their last meeting, which was actually at SW19 as he secured a bronze medal for Argentina at the Olympics.
A common theme prevails across the two ties, with the big hitting outsiders looking to repeat great successes against the game's most resilient defenders.
While both Janowicz and Del Potro possess the weapons to defy their underdog statuses, it remains to be seen whether they can match the mental nerve of the top two seeds on Centre Court.
