By Tony Fairbairn
- Alexander Zverev [4] v Rafael Nadal [PR]
- Elina Svitolina [15] v Karolina Pliskova
- Stefanos Tsitsipas [9] v Marton Fucsovics
PARIS, FRANCE – Rafael Nadal will take on Alexander Zverev in a blockbuster opening round match as the 14-time champion prepares for potentially his final Roland Garros campaign of his career.
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Alexander Zverev [4] v Rafael Nadal [PR] H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Alexander Zverev [4] v Rafael Nadal [PR] | H2H: Nadal leads 7-3 |
| Roland Garros 2024 | Paris, France |
| Clay (O) | Prize Money: €73,000 |
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As the men’s side continues to fill up with injuries and uncertainty, Alexander Zverev will believe his time is now to claim a maiden Grand Slam title. The German won his second Rome title of his career heading into Roland Garros and has reached the semi-finals in Paris in his last three appearances. However a warning for Zverev is that every time he seems to be a favourite to do well at a Grand Slam, he seems to produce underwhelming performances and the world number four will now look to change that pattern in Paris.
A massive obstacle awaits Zverev in the opening round as a blockbuster clash with 14-time champion Rafael Nadal is first for the German. The Spaniard has picked up gradual momentum over the last few weeks and has now even stated that this may not be his last appearance at Roland Garros. Having said that, if it is his last appearance then another vintage performance could be written in the stars as the intensity of his play continues to grow. Now Nadal will aim for a perfect performance as he looks to beat one of the in-form players in this year’s tournament.
Zverev will test Nadal’s stamina and longevity by extending the rallies, using the backhand to put the Spaniard on the backfoot as well as approaching the net to end rallies quickly. Meanwhile Nadal will use spin and angles to make Zverev move around the court as he will be aggressive on serve in order to neutralize the German’s returning quality. This will be an intriguing match with Nadal’s quality improving while Zverev normally produces underwhelming performances in the early stages of Grand Slams. It would not be a surprise to see Nadal produce another epic result at a place where he has had so much success but Zverev’s recent form makes him slight favourite here.
Prediction: Zverev in five sets.
Elina Svitolina [15] v Karolina Pliskova H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Elina Svitolina [15] v Karolina Pliskova | H2H: Pliskova leads 5-4 |
| Roland Garros 2024 | Paris, France |
| Clay (O) | Prize Money: €73,000 |
| Fourth on Suzanne-Lenglen (16:30 BST) | Discovery+ Add-on via Amazon Prime
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This time last year Elina Svitolina had no pressure or expectation on her as she played with freedom and aggression in her return to the tour. The Ukrainian reached a Roland Garros quarter-final and Wimbledon semi-final last year as she looked to be heading on an uphill trajectory. Roll on 12 months later and things look very different with Svitolina struggling for form and confidence especially against top players. Now with ranking points to defend the world number 17 will be hoping to regain the aggressive tennis that saw her play so well last year.
A titanic clash with Karolina Pliskova awaits in the opening round with the Czech Republican struggling with form herself. The days of Pliskova challenging for Grand Slam titles are long gone but some signs of life were seen earlier this year as she won a title in Romania and reached the semi-finals in Doha. However since then Pliskova has won only three matches and has lacked the consistent aggression needed to gain wins on the tour. The world number 51 will now be hoping to regain her form ahead of an important second half of the season.
Svitolina will look to play counter-attacking tennis as the Ukrainian will aim to force Pliskova behind the baseline, searching for drop-shots to mix up the tempo of the rallies. Meanwhile Pliskova will need to be consistent and aggressive on serve as she aims to neutralize Svitolina’s depth on return. This will be a testing opening match for Svitolina but one she should overcome in order to kickstart her Roland Garros campaign.
Prediction: Svitolina in straight sets.
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Stefanos Tsitsipas [9] v Marton Fucsovics H2H & Match Fundamentals
| Stefanos Tsitsipas [9] v Marton Fucsovics | H2H: Tsitsipas leads 1-0 |
| Roland Garros 2024 | Paris, France |
| Clay (O) | Prize Money: €73,000 |
| Second on Suzanne-Lenglen (12:30 BST) | Discovery+ Add-on via Amazon Prime
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It’s been a mixed clay court season for Stefanos Tsitsipas who will feel he is one of the players to take advantage of the unpredictable men’s draw. The former finalist started his clay court season by winning the title in Monte-Carlo as well as reaching the final in Barcelona. However Tsitsipas has failed to back that up since then with disappointing defeats in Madrid and Rome. Now Tsitsipas will aim to replicate his form from the first part of the clay court season as he searches for a maiden Grand Slam title.
First up for Tsitsipas is powerful Hungarian Marton Fucsovics who is in fairly good form heading into Paris. The Hungarian followed up a quarter-final in Estoril by winning the title in Bucharest as he played some electric baseline tennis. Although he has struggled with injury problems in recent weeks, the Hungarian will be confident in his qualities as he looks to cause a big shock at Roland Garros.
Tsitsipas will aim to use the wide serve to force Fucsovics out of position as the Greek will look to use the backhand to dominate play. Meanwhile Fucsovics will use the forehand to create depth and pin Tsitsipas behind the baseline. This will be a good opening test for Tsitsipas with the Greek’s better conditioning allowing him to grind out a first round win.
Prediction: Tsitsipas in four sets.
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