Defending French Open champion Rafael Nadal takes on German qualifier Yannick Maden in his quest for a 12th Roland Garros crown. Meanwhile, former French Open champion Stan Wawrinka will clash with the in-form Cristian Garin.
(2) Rafael Nadal vs. Yannick Maden
Rafael Nadal comes into Paris off one of his worst clay seasons since he won his maiden French Open title back in 2005. Of course, for just about any other player, Nadal’s results would have made for a banner spring. He posted semifinal showings in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid and won the event in Rome. But he frequently strolls into Paris with three clay court trophies to add to his crowded collection, so winning one is rather out of the ordinary.
It should be noted that Nadal was particularly impressive in his run in Rome. The Spaniard knocked out an in-form Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semifinals and Novak Djokovic in the finals. The Nadal who struggled in Monte-Carlo looked like a distant memory.
The world No. 2 will take on his second consecutive qualifier in Germany’s Yannick Maden. The 29-year-old is ranked 114 in the world. He’s had good results on the Challenger tour, where he’s made a couple of finals this season, but his qualifying success has been spotty. A main draw win in Paris is something of a boon for the German. That he runs into the King of Clay in his second round match is bad luck.
Cheryl pick: Nadal in 3
Ricky pick: Nadal in 3
[polldaddy poll=10330439]
(24) Stan Wawrinka vs. Cristian Garin
If the draw gods were friendly to Rafael Nadal, they were downright unkind to Stan Wawrinka. The Swiss No. 2, a former French Open champion himself, drew probably the trickiest unranked player in the draw. Cristian Garin, the budding Chilean star, came from out of nowhere to make the final in Sao Paulo; he was ranked No. 92 at the time. Since that tournament in February he has won titles in Houston and Munich and he now sits at No. 37 in the world.
Wawrinka, who has slowly made his way back from surgery, hasn’t had nearly as much success on clay this season as Garin. The Swiss did make the quarters in Madrid, where he went out to Rafael Nadal, but otherwise he hasn’t made much noise on the dirt. Given Garin’s success and Wawrinka’s slight struggles, this may well be a match in which player ranking is not the best indicator of eventual outcome.
Cheryl pick: Garin in 4
Ricky pick: Wawrinka in 5
[polldaddy poll=10330293]
I am so looking forward to this match!! The weather is not too agreeable today but that’s ok. A Rafa win will make it all better, lol!
VAMOS Rafa!!!
Hope you enjoyed your date with Rafa! 🙂 He must have been thinking of you when he broke himself twice in the 3rd set just so you could watch him a bit longer….
Ramara, exactly what i thought!!! Ain’t I lucky, lol! For the first time since i’ve been watching Rafa, I welcomed those breaks!!! But his opponent was never a threat!
I was seated court side and I spent most of the time taking photos and video-recording, I must confess. I did not pay much attention to the match, lol. But I very much enjoyed the match and the atmosphere. Rafa’s shots are wonderful to see live!
I also saw Wawrinka and Mugaruza, and also Paire. Today was a good day all in all, and I am happy I came all the way from St Lucia to watch Rafa play……no regrets!!!!!
Rafa played well but he did go walk abouts in the third…..I took it he got bored, lol!!
VAMOS Rafa, and I wish you all the best!!!!
Not sure if I will get to go to RG after today as tickets are hard to come by but I will be happy to watch in tv!!
Second Yannick in a row taking on Rafa. The last Frenchman to win Rolland Garros was named Yannick.
Therefore?
A Frenchman will defeat Rafa at Rolland Garros to win the title this year
Keep your mind focused, remain confident and be strong, Rafa!
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D7uLXOXX4AUnH63.jpg
Wednesday picks
Tsitsipas in 3
Pella in 5
Popyrin in 5
Goffin in 4
Gasquet in 4
Nadal in 3
Carballes Baena in 5
Nishikori in 4
Berrettini in 5
Cilic in 4
Federer in 4
Schwartzman in 4
Kohlscrieber in 3
Garin in 4
Caerno Busta in 3
Paire in 5
Nadal in 3
Garrin in 4
Rafa playing so well!!5-0.
Where are you Mona?! I can’t see anyone madly blowing kisses!💋💋
I am.very disappointed in you!☺
Amy I was there taking photos and video! I was just so happy to see Rafa!! I didn’t realise the seats were courstside seats (186 euors, no hospitality) until in got into SL so you could imagine my excitement!!!
However, I do understand y sometimes the crowd wants more tennis like 3 or 5 sets. Bcos you just really have fun, but of course hoping that ure favorite wins, lol!!
But Amy, I did shout, scream and clap for all of us, lol!!!
Rafa playing some sloppy tennis in the third set and gets broken! He does have these lulls in concentration…
Rafa just lost focus bcos really the guy was not a threat at all, but Rafa wont let that happen with a sharper opponent.
I watched Zverev on Tuesday and that’s exactly what happened to him. He lost focus, thought he had the match won and before you know it match went to 5 sets!!
OMG! Rafa broken again! His serve has been poor this set!
Some very odd errors by Rafa in the third.Thought he was looking quite irritated…
Rafa did an interview with Eurosport post-match, said he lost focus at some points during the match and was annoyed with himself. I can’t see the interview but that’s what they reported. I just figured he got a bit bored.
Yes, he was a little bit. I don’t think he was liking the clay, the way it felt under his feet like he could not slide with ease.
Courier says Nishi-Tsonga are playing chess. Jo wants forehands, Nishi should avoid giving them to him. Pretty easy chess, no? Ah well, I expect the execution is a lot harder than the strategy.
Bit hard to see Tsonga as tennis’s version of Gary Kasparov!
Is Goffin in form? Rafa plays him next I think..
Probably. He’s in the 3rd round and healthy for a change… However in-form Goffin has never beaten Rafa on clay. He had a win against him at the WTF in 2017 but Rafa’s knees were hurting so badly during that match that he said afterwards that win or lose he’d made up his mind to withdraw after the match. Goffin was playing at the top of his game then, made the final but lost to Dimi.
I’m with Ramara: in-form, out-form, over-form, Top-form- doesn’t make even the slightest difference! On clay, and even more so at a major, Goffin could play the absolute greatest he has ever played, while Rafa could be at his C level (which he’s obviously not), and Rafa would still absolutely destroy Goffin… No disrespect to Goffin, it’s just the reality of it. He has literally zero weapons that can hurt Rafa in any way whatsoever, especially at RG. There is nobody in the draw until al least the SF who can realistically even come close to getting a set off Rafa right now at RG. 🤷♂️
Yeah, I might be wrong but the early rounds seem like match practice for Rafa, lol!!
Goffin’s best, which he displayed a couple years ago in jumping to a 4-2 against Nadal before an atrocious call against him made him lose focus, can definitely trouble Nadal, even on clay. At his best, Goffin can hit with enough pace, depth and accuracy to trouble anyone. He’s obviously been hurt a lot and I haven’t seen him for awhile so have no idea whether he’s close to that.
This is a massacre. Wawrinka is polishing the floor with Garin.
Yeah, Stan’s BH is a beaut!!! It was just ooohs and aaahhhs by the crowd every time he hit them! Just awesome!
Kohlscrieber lost to Mahut in straight. Wow!
Mahut looks a lot taller in person! I was really surprised!!! I didn’t even take a pic though….lol!!!