Montpellier R2 previews and predictions: Simon vs. Tsonga, Goffin vs. Krajinovic

It will be an all-French affair when Gilles Simon and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga collide in the Montpellier second round on Wednesday. David Goffin and Filip Krajinovic are also aiming for a place in the quarterfinals.

(4) Gilles Simon vs. (WC) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Simon and Tsonga will be squaring off for the 13th time in their careers and for the eighth time on an indoor hard court in their home country when they clash in round two of the Open Sud de France on Wednesday. Tsonga is leading the head-to-head series 8-3 at the ATP level, including 5-1 on indoor hard courts. However, they have faced each other only once since the end of the 2015 campaign (Tsonga most recently prevailed 6-4, 6-2 two years ago in Marseille). Simon can also take heart from the fact that he is enjoying the much better current form among these two Frenchmen. The world No. 31 has already won five matches this season with semifinal showings in Pune and Sydney.

Tsonga is back from a knee injury and toiling away at 210th in the rankings. That left the 33-year-old at the mercy of the Australian Open draw and he ended up having to face eventual champion Novak Djokovic in the second round (lost 6-3, 7-5, 6-4). Whereas Simon earned a first-round bye in Montpellier as the No. 4 seed, Tsonga scraped past fellow wild card Ugo Humbert 3-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 on Monday. The surface will give Tsonga a chance, but a confident Simon will likely get too many balls back and break down his more erratic opponent.

Pick: Simon in 2

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Filip Krajinovic vs. (2) David Goffin

Although Goffin has been plagued by injuries over the past two years, he still registers at a respectable 21st in the world. The Belgian is a modest 2-2 for his 2019 campaign so far, falling in the Aussie Open third round to a red-hot Danill Medvedev to go along with an opening setback in Doha at the hands of Ricardas Berankis in a final-set tiebreaker.

Up first for Goffin on Wednesday is a second career ATP-level meeting with Krajinovic, who lost their only previous encounter 3-6, 6-2, 7-6(3), 6-1 at the 2015 French Open. Krajinovic booked his spot in this week’s last 16 by defeating qualifier Nicolas Mahut 7-6(7), 6-4 on Tuesday. Having dealt with physical problems of his own, the Serb finds himself down at No. 72 in the world. This should be a nice opportunity for a well-rested Goffin to start getting back on track.

Pick: Goffin in 2

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