Third-round action at Roland Garros will begin on Friday, with an intriguing contest between Dominic Thiem and Steve Johnson on the schedule. Novak Djokovic is also taking the court again for a date with Diego Schwartzman.
(6) Dominic Thiem vs. (25) Steve Johnson
Johnson’s emotional week–and what he hopes turns into a full fortnight–at the French Open will continue when he goes up against Thiem for a tough third-round showdown on Thursday. Nothing, however, has been as tough as simply taking the court in Paris because Johnson’s father passed away less than three weeks ago. This is his second tournament since. The 26th-ranked American did well to reach the Geneva quarterfinals last week and he has already won two matches at Roland Garros, as well, outlasting Yuichi Sugita in five sets and Borna Coric in a four-setter that lasted almost four hours on Wednesday.
This marks the second-ever meeting between Johnson and Thiem, with the Austrian having previously prevailed 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-5 three years ago on the clay courts of Nice. Both players are much-improved now, although Thiem to an even greater extent. The 23-year-old is up to No. 7 in the rankings and well on his way to a repeat appearance in the World Tour Finals. Clay, as usual, has been especially beneficial for Thiem. His spring swing features runner-up finishes in Barcelona and Madrid in addition to a semifinal run in Rome. So far in Paris he has taken out both Bernard Tomic and Simone Bolelli in straight sets. A similar should result should be in the cards, and an emotionally-spent Johnson may not mind too much.
Pick: Thiem in 3
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Diego Schwartzman vs. (2) Novak Djokovic
Djokovic and Schwartzman will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers and for the second time at a Grand Slam when they meet again on Thursday. Their only previous encounter came in round one of the 2014 U.S. Open, with Djokovic dominating 6-1, 6-2, 6-4. The second-ranked Serb has already turned in two very similar performances so far at Roland Garros, beating Marcel Granollers 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 and Joao Sousa 6-1, 6-4, 6-3 to book a spot in the third round. Thus Djokovic’s partnership with new coach Andre Agassi, who is currently replacing the entire team that recently departed, is off to a good start.
Schwartzman took a much more difficult route through his opener, outlasting lucky loser Andrey Rublev 0-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7(3), 9-7. The 41st-ranked Argentine got off the court much faster on Wednesday, when he trounced Stefano Napolitano 6-3, 7-5, 6-2. And with those results this is another stellar tournament in 2017 for Schwartzman, who is 17-14 with quarterfinal finishes in Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and Monte-Carlo to go along with a semifinal showing in Istanbul. Unfortunately for the underdog, he is 0-12 lifetime against top 10 opponents and 3-27 in total sets. Those trends will likely continue against an opponent who is at least showing signs of the mojo that carried him to the 2016 French Open title.
Pick: Djokovic in 3 losing 11-14 games
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Thiem in 3 – I think he’s just too good for Stevie.
Djokovic in 3 losing 8-10 games. I think Diego’s just too short for Djokovic.
The Djokovic Schwartzman is making me laugh. Nole in three losing 11-13 games and Thiem in four
The Djokovic Schwartzman POLL is making me laugh is what I meant to say
hope springs eternal
S’man a pretty tough player…I saw him at IW and he can play….but Joker in straight.
As I expected, Diego Schwartzman could give Djoko plenty of problems, sure he did! He’s just not as fit as Djoko over BO5, even when Djoko wasn’t at his best. Diego is a fierce fighter and he will fight till the end. No shame losing to Djoko in five sets.