First-round action at the Paris Masters wraps up on Tuesday, when Gael Monfils goes up against qualifier Francisco Cerundolo. Nitto ATP Finals contender Hubert Hurkacz is back on the court following his final appearance in Basel.
(PR) Gael Monfils vs. Francisco Cerundolo
It has been another abbreviated, injury-plagued season for Monfils, but he is concluding it in decent fashion as he heads into the Rolex Paris Masters. The 37-year-old Frenchman won multiple matches at three of his five stops on the American hard-court swing and captured the Stockholm title two weeks ago. He beat Daniel Altmaier in Vienna before losing to Frances Tiafoe 6-4 in the third set–a result that is not bad at all on the scoreboard and leaves him well rested for Paris.
Up first for Monfils on Tuesday is Cerundolo, who won their only previous encounter 6-2, 6-3 at the 2022 Miami Masters. Of course, that result hardly means anything a year and half later now that Monfils is the one in strong form and Cerundolo is struggling. The 21st-ranked Argentine is 4-8 in his last 12 tournament matches (not including Davis Cup and Laver Cup). Monfils appears to be healthy and he will certainly be motivated in front of the home crowd, so he should advance without too much trouble.
Pick: Monfils in 2
Sebastian Korda vs. (11) Hubert Hurkacz
Hurkacz and Korda are squaring off at a second consecutive Masters 1000 event. Their most recent meeting was a big one in the Shanghai semifinals, where Hurkacz prevailed 6-3, 6-4 on the way to his second Masters title. That gave the 11th-ranked Pole a 2-1 lead in the head-to-head series; Hurkacz also won 6-3, 6-3 in the 2021 Delray Beach final before Korda triumphed in a fifth-set tiebreaker at this year’s Australian Open.
This could be a tough situation for Hurkacz, who just played on Sunday in the Basel final (lost to Felix Auger-Aliassime in two tiebreakers) and also has the pressure of being in Nitto ATP Finals contention. The 26-year-old must reach at least the semifinals to have a chance of qualifying for Turin. Korda is wrapping up the season in style with semifinal results in Shanghai and Zhuhai plus a runner-up performance in Astana. The 23-year-old American lost right away in Basel, so he is well wrested heading into Paris. This is a great opportunity for Hurkacz to pull off a minor upset.
Pick: Korda in 3
WWW?
Reckon Hubie will be feeling the pressure and lose. Unfortunately.
I like Hubie .Similar game to Meddy.
Not so keen on Korda. He’s too inconsistent.
Hope Gael entertains and goes far .
Hubie won! 😀
Imagine Gael has a good chance of beating Cerundolo..
They asked the question on Prime, name two unseeded runners up here.Jerzy Janowutz was one .Can’t think of another
this has to be the worse page for tips.. wtf was that tip on korda… wow unbelievable
it was 6-3 in the third set, clown
Well you did say Hurkacz would pull off a minor upset.
Taylor is injured and out of Paris and the tour finals. He was #9 in the race so had a,shot to get there.
Not calling him by his nickname today as he is injured.
I really would love Hubie to get to the finals. He is now#9 in the race.
He does play like a cart horse at times. Too much on brute force, then commies were saying his coaches very trying to get him to volley more but he quite stubborn just like his nickname.