By Tony Fairbairn
- Alexander Zverev [4] v Holger Rune [13]
- Elena Rybakina [4] v Elina Svitolina [15]
- Casper Ruud [7] v Taylor Fritz [12]
PARIS, FRANCE – Alexander Zverev’s tough draw at Roland Garros continues as he takes on former quarter-finalist Holger Rune on day nine of the second Grand Slam of the year.
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Alexander Zverev [4] v Holger Rune [13] H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Alexander Zverev [4] v Holger Rune [13] | H2H: Rune leads 1-0 |
| Roland Garros 2024 | Paris, France |
| Clay (O) | Prize Money: €250,000 |
| Fourth on Philippe Chatrier (Not before 19:15 BST) | Discovery+ Add-on via Amazon Prime
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Alexander Zverev was on the brink of elimination in his third round match as the German came back from a double break down in the deciding set to win a last set tiebreak against Tallon Griekspoor. The Rome champion survived a tricky assignment as he remains on course to challenge for a maiden Grand Slam title. However if Zverev doesn’t raise his level then those dreams will be thrown in the trash as his draw will only get harder in the second week as the level of opposition improves.
The tough tests continue as Zverev now faces former quarter-finalist Holger Rune in the last 16. After winning a last set tiebreak against Flavio Cobolli in his second round match, Rune raced to victory against Jozef Kovalik and has played his way into form at Roland Garros. After a year full of injuries and lack of form as well as a lack of confidence, Rune desperately needs a deep run at a tournament to give him a platform to build on for the rest of the season. Will Roland Garros be that tournament?
Zverev will look to serve aggressively as he will need to make a better start than he did against Griekspoor, using the backhand to dictate play from the baseline. Meanwhile Rune will look to create angles with the forehand and use the drop shot to bring Zverev closer to the net as he aims to be aggressive on return. This is a match that could go either way but should Zverev continue his poor starts to matches then Rune will fancy his chances.
Prediction: Rune in five sets.
Elena Rybakina [4] v Elina Svitolina [15] H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Elena Rybakina [4] v Elina Svitolina [15] | H2H: First Meeting |
| Roland Garros 2024 | Paris, France |
| Clay (O) | Prize Money: €250,000 |
| First on Philippe Chatrier (10:00 BST) | Discovery+ Add-on via Amazon Prime
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A successful tournament continues for Elena Rybakina after the Kazakh prevailed against Elise Mertens to reach the last 16 in Paris for the second time. The fourth seed hasn’t been talked about much as a title contender for Roland Garros but there is no reason why she shouldn’t be as the faster conditions definitely suit her game. Now Rybakina will continue to go about her business as she will hope going under the radar will continue to benefit her results.
Next up for Rybakina is former quarter-finalist Elina Svitolina with the Ukrainian regaining her confidence at Roland Garros. Svitolina had been struggling with form recently as she has a lot of ranking points to defend over the next month but a successful first week in Paris has put her in a good position to gain some much-needed confidence that can act as a platform for the rest of the season. Now Svitolina looks to reach a fifth Roland Garros quarter-final as she looks to secure a victory against a top five opponent.
Rybakina will look to be aggressive on serve as she will need to main consistency on first serve and use the forehand to pin Svitolina behind the baseline. Meanwhile Svitolina will play counter-attacking tennis as she will use angles to create space on the court in order to hit efficient winners from the baseline. This could be one of the matches of the tournament with two different styles taking on each other. Rybakina will start as narrow favourite given her form over this clay court season but this match is just too close to call.
Prediction: Rybakina in three sets.
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Casper Ruud [7] v Taylor Fritz [12] H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Casper Ruud [7] v Taylor Fritz [12] | H2H: Ruud leads 1-0 |
| Roland Garros 2024 | Paris, France |
| Clay (O) | Prize Money: €250,000 |
| Fourth on Suzanne Lenglen (15:30 BST) | Discovery+ Add-on via Amazon Prime
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It’s been a tricky start to the tournament for two-time finalist Casper Ruud but the Norwegian is into the second week with a good chance of glory. Thrilling wins over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Tomas Martin Etcheverry give Ruud confidence that when the going gets tough, he has the champion’s qualities to prevail in intense circumstances. Next for Ruud will be to try and be more efficient as he aims for Grand Slam success in week two.
Standing in Ruud’s way is American Taylor Fritz, who is slowly getting the hang of clay having produced some good form over the last few weeks. The 12th seed’s latest win saw him take out Thanasi Kokkinakis in a gutsy five set win that saw him produce clutch serving under pressure. Now having recorded his best ever result at Roland Garros, the American will now look to keep his confidence going as he continues to build confidence ahead of the rest of the season.
Ruud will aim to produce deep returns as he will need to be aggressive on the forehand side in order to neutralize Fritz’s attacking game. Meanwhile Fritz will look to dominate on serve and move Ruud out of positioning, allowing easier approaches to the net. This will be a good match but Ruud’s clay court prowess should triumph here.
Prediction: Ruud in four sets.
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