Marseille R1 previews and predictions: Zverev vs. Mahut, Benneteau vs. Shapovalov

Alexander Zverev will kick off his Marseille campaign when he goes up against Nicolas Mahut on Tuesday. Another intriguing first-rounder features fellow wild cards Julien Benneteau and Denis Shapovalov.

(5) Alexander Zverev vs. Nicolas Mahut

Building on an impressive 2016 campaign, Zverev has maintained momentum during the first two months of this season as he heads into the Open 13. The 18th-ranked German’s 7-3 record includes a five-set loss to Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open third round and a title in Montpellier. Zverev will be well-rested heading into another 250-point event on the indoor hard courts of France because he dropped his Rotterdam opener against Dominic Thiem last week.

Up first for the fifth seed on Tuesday is Mahut, whom he has never faced. The 54th-ranked Frenchman is just 2-4 in ATP tournaments this season and has lost three such matches in a row dating back to the Sydney second round. He is coming off a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 setback at the hands of compatriot Gilles Simon in the Rotterdam first round. Mahut could make this competitive if he serves extremely well, but an in-form Zverev has an obvious edge.

Pick: Zverev in 2

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(WC) Julien Benneteau vs. (WC) Denis Shapovalov

Shapovalov will be in action for the first time since being famously defaulted from the decisive fifth runner of Canada’s Davis Cup first-round tie against Great Britain. Trailing Kyle Edmund by two sets and having just been broken at 1-1 in the third, Shapovalov blasted a ball in disgust that rocketed right into the eye of chair umpire Arnaud Gabas. Thus ended a dreadful weekend for the 17-year-old, during which he did not win a single set against either Edmund or Dan Evans.

He has to hope things begin to turn around when he faces Benneteau for the first time on Tuesday. At 35 years old, Benneteau still has never won an ATP title. He is 0-10 lifetime in finals and two of his runner-up performances have come indoors in France–including at this Marseille event in 2010. The oft-injured Frenchman is down at No. 120 in the world and he has done nothing of note this season. But he has home-court advantage in this one and may be able to take advantage of an opponent whose mental state could be fragile.

Pick: Benneteau in 2

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