Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and David Ferrer will kick off their Monte-Carlo campaigns on Tuesday. They are set for respective openers against Philipp Kohlschreiber and Jeremy Chardy.
(9) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga vs. Philipp Kohlschreiber
Tsonga and Kohlschreiber will be squaring off for the eighth time in their careers when they do battle in round two of the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters on Tuesday. The head-to-head series stands at 6-1 in Tsonga’s favor, including 2-1 on clay. They have not met since 2012, when Tsonga won encounters in Miami, Monte-Carlo (also in the second round), and Wimbledon.
Kohlschreiber advanced on Monday by taking out wild card Simone Bolelli 6-3, 6-4. It was an expected but also much-needed result for the 25th-ranked German, who had lost his openers in both Indian Wells and Miami. Tsonga is even more out of form at the moment. The ninth-seeded Frenchman, who got a first-round bye when compatriot Richard Gasquet pulled out, is just 4-4 in his last eight matches and his 1-1 Davis Cup record against Germany earlier this month included a loss to Peter Gojowczyk at home in France. Clay may not be Kohlschreiber’s best surface, either, but it will help him handle Tsonga’s power.
Pick: Kohlschreiber in 3
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Jeremy Chardy vs. (6) David Ferrer
Chardy is lucky to still be alive in Monte-Carlo after outlasting Igor Sijsling 1-6, 6-2, 7-6(5) on Sunday. The 48th-ranked Frenchman has now won third-set tiebreakers in the first round of consecutive tournaments (he beat Juan Monaco in such fashion last month in Miami). A relatively in-form Chardy is looking to win multiple matches at an event for the fifth time already this season.
Up next for Chardy is Ferrer, against whom the underdog is 1-6 lifetime. They have already faced each other twice in 2014, with Ferrer winning 6-2, 7-6(5), 6-2 at the Australian Open and 6-2, 6-3 in Rio de Janeiro. The sixth-ranked Spaniard reached the Aussie Open quarterfinals and captured the Rio title. He is coming off a tough loss to Kei Nishikori in the Miami fourth round. Both their head-to-head history and the surface indicate this should be mostly one-way traffic in Ferrer’s favor.
Pick: Ferrer in 2
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Kohl vs Tsonga is a tough one to call, but Maybe Kohl in 3, and Ferrer should roll over Chardy.