Second-round action at the Paris Masters begins on Tuesday, when Andrey Rublev and Carlos Alcaraz take the court. Rublev opens with Francisco Cerundolo, while Alcaraz gets his week started against Nicolas Jarry.
Francisco Cerundolo vs. (6) Andrey Rublev
Rublev and Cerundolo will be squaring off for the fourth time in their careers when they clash in round two of the Rolex Paris Masters on Tuesday. Cerundolo leads the head-to-head series 2-1, although all three of their previous meetings have come on clay. They most recently faced each other this spring in the Umag semifinals, with the Argentine prevailing 7-6(6), 6-4 on his way to the title.
An indoor hard court won’t favor Cerundolo as much, but he is an all-court player for whom this match is certainly winnable. It should help that the world No. 29 already has a win under his belt in Paris, having defeated Quentin Halys 7-6(5), 6-3 on Monday. However, the underdog will be facing a motivated Rublev–who is currently in the eighth an final qualifying spot for the year-end championship. The seventh-ranked Russian may not be on fire these days, but he has won at least one match at eight of his last nine tournaments.
Pick: Rublev in 3
Nicolas Jarry vs. (2) Carlos Alcaraz
Alcaraz is coming down the stretch in which he won’t finish No. 1 in the world but still has to be considered a success with Grand Slam titles won at the French Open and Wimbledon. The second-ranked Spaniard has two more chances to cap off 2024 in style, first at this Paris tournament and then at the Nitto ATP Finals. Alcaraz will be seeking just his second title since Wimbledon, with most recent one coming in Beijing–where he defeated Daniil Medvedev in the semis and Jannik Sinner in the final.
Up first for the 21-year-old is fourth showdown against Jarry, who trails the head-to-head series 2-1. The 37th-ranked Chilean pulled off a 7-6(2), 6-3 upset on the Golden Swing in Buenos Aires earlier this season after losing to Alcaraz twice in 2023 (in Rio de Janeiro and at Wimbledon). Anything other than clay is relatively detrimental for Jarry’s game and he is a horrendous 3-12 in his last 15 matches dating back to the Rome final even after beating Lorenzo Sonego in the Paris first round. Count on Alcaraz getting the job done with little trouble.
Pick: Alcaraz in 2
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