Antwerp R2 previews and predictions: Tsonga vs. Simon, Wawrinka vs. Lopez

Wednesday in Antwerp features a quartet of veterans as second-round action gets underway. An all-French affair pits Jo-Wilfried Tsonga against Gilles Simon, while Stan Wawrinka and Feliciano Lopez are also aiming for a place in the quarterfinals.

Gilles Simon vs. (6) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Tsonga and Simon will be squaring off for the 13th time in their careers when they collide in round two of the European Open on Wednesday. The head-to-head series stands at 9-3 in favor of Tsonga, who is dominating it 9-1 on hard courts following a 6-2, 7-6(3) victory earlier this season in Montpellier. Tsonga has remained injury plagued in the latter stages of his career, but he is in contention for 2020 Australian Open seeding at No. 36 in the world. The 34-year-old Frenchman has won two of his last three tournaments (one Challenger), including on the indoor hard courts of Metz last month, and he opened in Antwerp with a 6-3, 6-4 defeat of Lorenzo Sonego.

Simon waltzed into the second round by beating the soon-to-be-retired Steve Darcis 6-1, 6-2. However, the 47th-ranked Frenchman has failed to win multiple matches in eight consecutive tournaments, a stretch dating back to Wimbledon. Simon’s second match at events has been his waterloo of late and that trend will almost certainly continue with Tsonga on the other side of the net on an indoor hard court.

Pick: Tsonga in 2

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(4) Stan Wawrinka vs. Feliciano Lopez

Wawrinka will be playing for the first time since the U.S. Open when he takes the court on Wednesday. The 34-year-old Swiss fared well in New York, reaching the quarterfinals with a win over Novak Djokovic (via retirement) before falling to eventual runner-up Daniil Medvedev. A knee injury has delayed the start of Wawrinka’s fall swing, but he appears to be ready for a debut appearance in Antwerp.

Up first for the world No. 18 is an eighth career contest against Lopez, who trails the head-to-head series 4-3. They have not faced each other on a hard court since 2013, with their most recent encounter coming at the 2017 Queen’s Club event (on his preferred grass-court surface, Lopez prevailed 7-6(4), 7-5). Lopez captured a second Queen’s Club title this summer but has understandably cooled off since that surprising triumph. This is also the 38-year-old Spaniard’s first tournament since the U.S. Open, and he got it started by beating Cameron Norrie 7-6(2), 6-4 on Tuesday. Wawrinka should be able to round into form in time to get past Lopez in a competitive affair.

Pick: Wawrinka in 3

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