It will be a battle between different generations in French tennis when Arthur Fils and Richard Gasquet collide in round one of the ASB Classic on Tuesday evening.
Surprisingly, Gasquet is the defending champion of this tournament. At 36 years old, he triumphed at the beginning of 2023 in Auckland for his first ATP title since 2018 (‘s-Hertogenbosch). That will obviously give Gasquet confidence heading into this season, but at the same time he faces the pressure of a rankings drop that could mark the beginning of the end to his career. If Gasquet loses on Tuesday, he is projected to fall 55 spots to No. 131 in the world.
It’s a nightmare draw for the former world No. 7. Fils won their only previous encounter 7-5, 7-5 on the indoor hard courts of Montpellier in 2023 and that was before the teenager had really established himself as a force on tour. Now 19 years old, Fils has already soared to a career-best ranking of 35th. He kicked off his 2024 campaign with a quarterfinal performance in Hong Kong, where he pushed eventual champion Andrey Rublev to three sets.
Although this should be a fun all-French affair with plenty of great shot-making, in the end it will likely be a somewhat routine day at the office for Fils.
Pick: Fils in 2
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