Gael Monfils will be back in action on the heels of his miracle first-round win when he runs into Holger Rune on Thursday in Paris. Round two is also wrapping up with a showdown between Grigor Dimitrov and Emil Ruusuvuori.
(6) Holger Rune vs. (WC) Gael Monfils
Monfils’ first-round win over Sebastian Baez is the story of the tournament so far. The 36-year-old was struggling physically–understandable since he had not played a best-of-five match since the 2022 Australian Open–and got wiped out 6-1 in the fourth set before trailing 4-0 in the fifth. A fair amount of fans even left at that point, and what a comeback they missed. Monfils improbably recovered from the brink of defeat to triumph 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 1-6, 7-5 after three hours and 47 minutes on Tuesday night.
Up next for the former world No. 6 on Thursday is Rune, the current world No. 6. The Dane’s best result of his career came in Paris last fall with a 1000-point title on the indoor hard courts of Bercy, and a move to clay will suit him just fine. Rune reached the Roland Garros quarterfinals last spring and his current clay swing includes runner-up performance in both Monte-Carlo and Rome. The 20-year-old is red hot and obviously more rested than Monfils, so the chances of more magic being up the Frenchman’s sleeve are slim.
Pick: Rune in 3
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Emil Ruusuvuori vs. (28) Grigor Dimitrov
Dimitrov and Ruusuvuori will also be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers on Thursday. They took much different paths to the second round, which isn’t surprising given the competition level. Dimitrov destroyed little-known qualifier Timofey Skatov 6-0, 6-3, 6-2, while Ruusuvuori outlasted a tough Frenchman in Gregoire Barrere 6-2, 6-7(7), 5-7, 6-1, 6-4.
Russuvuori needed four hours and 14 minutes to advance, but he has never had any kind of endurance issues or really any physical problems at all during his career so fatigue should not be a factor. The 24-year-old Finn has now won 16 tour-level matches this season (the same number as Dimitrov), which includes a quarterfinal run in Miami. As for Dimitrov, dating back to the 2021 French Open he has advanced past the second round of a slam only twice–and never past the third round. This is a great opportunity for Ruusuvuori to take the next step in his career and reach the last 32 of a major for the first time.
Pick: Ruusuvuori in 5
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who ya got?
That Monfils match was of epic proportions! I wish all tennis crowds could be that into the match. Rune will be a different beast for sure.
Monfils out injured
Rune in 3 ( is Gael really hurt?)….Dtrov in 4.