Jannik Sinner will begin his bid for a first French Open title when he faces Chris Eubanks during first-round action on Monday. Gael Monfils also headlines the Day 2 schedule, set for a matchup against Thiago Seyboth Wild.
Chris Eubanks vs. (2) Jannik Sinner
When healthy, Sinner has been the favorite to win any and every tournament he has entered in 2024. After all, the second-ranked Italian has been the best player on tour–by a wide margin–dating back to last fall. However, Sinner heads into the French Open as a considerable question mark because of a hip injury that reduced him to completing just one clay-court tournament prior to arriving in Paris. The 22-year-old lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Monte-Carlos semifinals before withdrawing from a Madrid quarterfinal match against Felix Auger-Aliassime.
There had been rumors that Sinner was going to withdraw from Roland Garros, but now it looks like he is ready to go for a first-round contest against Eubanks on Monday. Sinner won their only previous meeting 6-4, 7-6(8), 6-2 at the 2022 U.S. Open. Clay is a much worse surface for Eubanks, who was on fire last summer on grass (Mallorca title, Wimbledon quarterfinals) but has cooled off in a big way. In fact, the 46th-ranked American is just 4-10 on the main tour this season. Unless Sinner is way less than 100 percent, this will almost certainly be a straight-set beatdown.
Pick: Sinner in 3
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Gael Monfils vs. Thiago Seyboth Wild
Both Monfils and Seyboth Wild played memorable first-round matches at the 2023 French Open. Monfils came back from 0-4, 30-40 down in the fifth set to stun Sebastian Baez 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 1-6, 7-5, while Seyboth Wild upset Daniil Medvedev 7-6(5), 6-7(6), 2-6, 6-3, 6-4. Only one will get back to the second round in 2024, as they will go head-to-head for the second time in their careers on Monday. Their only previous encounter came two years ago on the red clay of Lyon, where Monfils cruised 7-5, 6-4.
At 37 years old, Monfils is still ranked a respectable No. 37 in the world. Although he is by no means in peak physical condition, the Frenchman is feeling better than he was last spring–and even then he managed to survive a ridiculous five-set match against Baez before withdrawing prior to round two. Seyboth Wild, who comes in at No. 58, is a mediocre 12-14 at the ATP level in 2024 and an especially disappointing 8-9 on dirt. This projects to be another topsy-turvy showdown, one in which Monfils will likely ride the wave of a raucous crowd en route to a big win.
Pick: Monfils in 5
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WWW?
Should be fun…Monfils in 4.
Your Humbert call was spot on!
Admittedly, the first round is always a bit tricky. While many turned out as expected, there were some that were completely unexpected.
I’m impressed you’ve been on fire over the last week.
Saw a bit of Sinner match. He looked very impressive, very sharp, moving fast.