Flavio Cobolli and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard are coming off impressive performances at last week’s ATP 250 events. They will make quick turnarounds to face Hamad Medjedovic and David Goffin, respectively, at Roland Garros on Tuesday.
Flavio Cobolli vs. (Q) Hamad Medjedovic
Tuesday’s showdown between two of last season’s NextGen ATP Finals participants figures to be one of the best of the entire French Open first round. Medjedovic, who lifted the NextGen Trophy, has not been able to build on that success in 2024 due to a bad illness, but he is starting to get back on track. The 20-year-old Serb reached the third round of the Rome Masters as a qualifier and then qualified at Roland Garros with straight-set victories over Lucas Pouille, Filip Krajinovic, and Gregory Blancaneaux. When healthy, Medjedovic’s talent is consistently on full display.
Cobolli has been doing plenty of damage on the main tour, with 15 of his 21 such match wins coming this season. The 22-year-old Italian is up to 53rd in the rankings thanks in part to a third-round showing at the Australian Open and a semifinal run last week in Geneva, where he lost to eventual champion Casper Ruud in a third-set tiebreaker. With Medjedovic having already been in Paris for a week while picking up three qualifying wins, the world No. 135 may be able to take advantage of a somewhat fatigued opponent.
Pick: Medjedovic in 5
David Goffin vs. (WC) Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard
Like Cobolli, Mpetshi Perricard will also have just two full days off following last week’s exploits. The 20-year-old went all the way to the title in Lyon, where he saved one championship point before outlasting Tomas Martin Etcheverry 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(7) for his first ATP title in just his third tour-level event. Mpetshi Perricard needed a wild card for the French Open since he was outside the top 100 at the entry deadline, but he climbed from No. 117 to No. 66 with his Lyon success and therefore won’t be requiring any Grand Slam wild cards in the near future.
Up first for the Frenchman in Paris is a second meeting with Goffin, who lost their only previous encounter 7-5, 6-3 on the indoor hard courts of Antwerp in 2023. It is Mpetshi Perricard who has home-court advantage this time around, but Goffin can never be discounted at the French Open. The Belgian, who also enjoys plenty of crowd support at this event, was a quarterfinalist in 2016 and has advanced to at least the third round on seven occasions. However, at 33 years old Goffin has struggled physically in recent seasons and finds himself down at No. 115 in the world. This is a great opportunity for Mpetshi Perricard to keep his momentum going.
Pick: Mpetshi Perricard in 4
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Medj in 4; GMP in 3.