Going into the third round of the BNP Paribas Open, Alexander Zverev had never defeated Andy Murray (0-2 lifetime; 0-3 if you count a Hopman Cup loss).
Zverev did not have too much trouble finally getting on the scoreboard against Murray, as he beat the former world No. 1 6-4, 7-6(4).
The 24-year-old German now takes the same winless record (0-3) against Gael Monfils heading into Wednesday night’s fourth-round encounter at the Indian Wells Masters. Of course, Monfils’ perfection in this matchup can be easily explained by the fact that they have not faced each other since 2016. The Frenchman’s 6-4, 6-0 victory in the 2016 Washington, D.C. semifinals improved his overall mark to 6-0 in total sets at Zverev’s expense.
But to say this is a different Zverev more than five years later would be a gross understatement. He is now a staple of the world’s top five and this season he won gold at the Tokyo Olympics and reached the semis at the French Open and U.S. Open. So far in Indian Wells he has ousted Jenson Brooksby in three sets and Murray in straights.
Monfils has been incredibly consistent of late; in fact, even in his prime would he would generally endure more bad losses than he is right now (albeit mixed in with more outstanding results). The 35-year-old has now won multiple matches in six consecutive tournaments following victories this fortnight over Gianluca Mager and Kevin Anderson.
This feels like a match in which Monfils will come out playing well and still come up on the short end of a competitive first set, perhaps because his opponent will likely win more free points on serve. After that, Zverev could be able to maintain control.
Pick: Zverev in 2
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