Metz R2 previews and predictions: Bublik vs. Fognini, Wawrinka vs. Van Assche

Seeds Alexander Bublik and Stan Wawrinka will take the court as second-round competition continues in Metz on Wednesday afternoon. They will be going up against Fabio Fognini and Luca van Assche, respectively.

(5) Alexander Bublik vs. (WC) Fabio Fognini

Two of the most combustible characters on the ATP Tour will be going head-to-head when Bublik and Fognini square off for the first time in their careers during second-round action at the Moselle Open on Wednesday. Fognini is making a rare appearance on the main tour (6-12 record this year) and he opened with a hard-fought 7-6(3), 7-6(9) defeat of Thiago Seyboth Wild on Tuesday. The 147th-ranked Italian has not won back-to-back matches outside of Challengers since Roland Garros.

Bublik had been in line to play a first-round match as the No. 5 seed, but he moved into No. 1 seed Holger Rune’s place at the top of the draw–and with it a bye–after the 20-year-old Dane pulled out. You never know what you are going to get from the 26-year-old Kazakh on any given day, but he is coming off a decent third-round effort at the Paris Masters and that should give him some confidence. Barring an absolutely terrible day on serve, Bublik will likely be way too good for Fognini on an indoor hard court.

Pick: Bublik in 2

(8) Stan Wawrinka vs. Luca Van Assche

Wawrinka is struggling down the stretch of yet another season on the ATP Tour and he still desperately wants to win his first title since 2017 (Geneva). The 38-year-old Swiss came close this summer on the red clay of Umag before losing the final in a tight three-setter against Alexei Popyrin. He has a very realistic chance to get over the hump in Metz, where top two seeds Rune and Alex de Minaur withdrew–leaving world No. 15 Karen Khachanov as the highest-ranked player. Wawrinka began his bid in dominant fashion on Monday, destroying Bernabe Zapata Miralles 6-0, 6-2 on Monday.

Up next for the world No. 53 is Van Assche, who won their only previous encounter 1-6, 7-6(4), 6-4 earlier this season on the clay courts of Banja Luka. The 19-year-old Frenchman has earned all nine of his lifetime main-tour match victories in 2023, but those have come at the expense of 16 losses. He had been on a four-match ATP losing streak before beating Botic van de Zandschulp in a third-set tiebreaker on Monday. Especially on an indoor hard court, this is a great opportunity for Wawrinka to secure a spot in the quarterfinals.

Pick: Wawrinka in 3