Milos Raonic is round one away from getting another shot at Novak Djokovic, whom he extended to three sets in Rome. Raonic is facing Marcel Granollers during fourth-round French Open action on Sunday, while Djokovic is going up against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
(13) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga vs. (2) Novak Djokovic
Djokovic and Tsonga will be squaring off for the 17th time in their careers and for the second time at the French Open when they collide in a marquee fourth-rounder on Sunday. The head-to-head series stands at 11-5 overall and just 2-0 on clay, both in Djokovic’s favor. They have not faced each other since last fall, when the Serb prevailed 6-2, 7-5 in the Shanghai semifinals. Their previous Roland Garros showdown came in the 2012 quarterfinals, a thriller that saw Djokovic saved multiple match points in a 6-1, 5-7, 5-7, 7-6(6), 6-1 victory.
Tsonga has given his French fans at least some reason to be encouraged so far this fortnight, but this still is not the Tsonga of 2012. He is down at No. 14 in the world and headed into this event with just a 17-10 record on the season. Tsonga is playing relatively well, but his win over a woefully out-of-form Jerzy Janowicz should not be overrated. Djokovic has taken out Joao Sousa, Jeremy Chardy, and Marin Cilic, dropping a set to Cilic in the process. The world No. 2 will force his opponent to hit far more shots than Janowicz and Jurgen Melzer did in the previous two rounds, and the current Tsonga is not likely to be able to do it.
Pick: Djokovic in 3 losing fewer than 13 games
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(8) Milos Raonic vs. Marcel Granollers
Raonic and Granollers will be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers on Sunday. That probably is not good news for Granollers, who would be better-served to have seen the Raonic serve at least on one previous occasion. It also looks like the end of a great draw for the Spaniard, who got a retirement from Ivan Dodig in round one, outlasted a hobbled Alexandr Dolgopolov in five sets, then beat an unseeded Martin Klizan in the last 32.
While Granollers had to finish off Klizan in a fourth set on Saturday, Raonic got the job done against Gilles Simon just before darkness on Friday. The ninth-ranked Canadian survived early deficits before advancing 4-6, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2, 7-5. Raonic is 18-7 for the year, which is getting better and better with each tournament and saw him extend Djokovic to three sets in the Rome semifinals. Granollers has a crafty all-court game, but Raonic’s serve and power groundstrokes will keep the underdog off balance and away from the net.
Pick: Raonic in 3 with at least 1 tiebreaker
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