Rafael Nadal will begin his quest for an 11th Monte-Carlo title when he goes up against Aljaz Bedene during second-round action on Wednesday. Novak Djokovic, who did not have a bye, is facing Borna Coric in his second match of the week.
(1) Rafael Nadal vs. Aljaz Bedene
Nadal is playing in a tournament for the first time since the Australian Open, but there are no questions at all regarding his status as the overwhelming favorite this week. After all, the world No. 1 already has two clay-court matches–and two dominant ones–under his belt heading into the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. In the Davis Cup quarterfinals against Germany in Valencia, Nadal helped the host nation advance by destroying both Philipp Kohlschreiber and Alexander Zverev in straight sets. Now it is on to Monte-Carlo, where the top seed is a 10-time champion and owner of a ridiculous 63-4 lifetime record.
Up first for Nadal on Wednesday is a second career contest against Bedene, who lost their only previous encounter 6-3, 6-3 in the same round of this same event in 2016. The 58th-ranked Slovenian gets another shot at the clay-court king–as if that’s a good thing–thanks to his 6-4, 7-6(3) victory over lucky loser Mirza Basic on Monday. Bedene is an impressive 12-6 this season with a runner-up showing on the red clay of Buenos Aires and a quarterfinal performance in Rio de Janeiro. Although the underdog is quite capable on the slow stuff, Nadal looked unbeatable in Davis Cup and he will be eager to get off the court quickly to conserve energy for a quarterfinal date with either Novak Djokovic or Dominic Thiem.
Pick: Nadal in 2 losing 3-4 games
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(9) Novak Djokovic vs. Borna Coric
Djokovic and Coric will be going head-to-head for the second time in their careers, as well, when they battle for a third-round spot on Wednesday. Their only previous meeting also came in the second round of a clay-court Masters 1000 event (Madrid) in 2016, when Djokovic got the job done 6-2, 6-4. The 30-year-old Serb may be more vulnerable now, having played only three tournaments since the end of Wimbledon last summer. Recovering from major elbow issues, the world No. 13 lost to Hyeon Chung in the Australian Open fourth round and dropped his openers in both Indian Wells (to Taro Daniel) and Miami (Benoit Paire). Perhaps healthier now, Djokovic picked up the pace to hammer compatriot Dusan Lajovic 6-0, 6-1 on Monday in Monte-Carlo.
Coric is a stellar 15-6 in 2018 with an outstanding back-to-back run in Indian Wells (semifinals) and Miami (quarterfinals). The 21-year-old Croat, who also reached quarterfinals in Doha and Dubai, is in contention for French Open seeding at No. 39 in the world. Coric will have to be productive over the next several weeks in order to snag a seed, and that effort got off to a strong start when he trounced Julien Benneteau 6-2, 6-3 in his Monte-Carlo opener. This will be a much tougher test for Djokovic against a red-hot opponent, and one he may not be able to pass due to his relative rust.
Pick: Coric in 3
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