‘s-Hertogenbosch R2 previews and predictions: De Minaur vs. Bergs, Paul vs. Popyrin

Top two seeds Alex de Minaur and Tommy Paul will get things started in ‘s-Hertogenbosch on Thursday afternoon. De Minaur begins his week against Zizou Bergs, while Paul is set for a matchup with Alexei Popyrin.

(1) Alex de Minaur vs. (LL) Zizou Bergs

Considering that De Minaur even played well on clay, he should really like his chances heading into the grass-court swing. Clay probably has to be considered his worst surface, but the ninth-ranked Australian reached the quarterfinals in Monte-Carlo, the fourth round in Rome, and the quarters at the French Open. He is now 29-11 for the season, which also includes a title in Acapulco and a runner-up performance in Rotterdam.

Up first for De Minaur at the Libema Open is a second-round showdown against Bergs on Thursday. The 25-year-old Belgian is into the top 100 for the first time in his career (No. 81) after advancing to the Roland Garros third round as a qualifier. Bergs needed a lucky-loser spot in the ‘s-Hertogenbosch main draw after falling to Tristan Schoolkate, but he did well to defeat 2022 champion Tim van Rijthoven 6-4, 6-3 on Tuesday. That was a dream draw for Bergs given that Van Rijthoven is mostly off the tour these days, but this is obviously where the underdog’s luck can be expected to run out.

Pick: De Minaur in 2

Alexei Popyrin vs. (2) Tommy Paul

Paul and Popyrin will be facing each other for the fourth time in their careers on Thursday. Popyrin won their only previous main-tour meeting 6-4, 6-3 three years ago at an ATP 250 in Melbourne, but Paul leads the overall head-to-head series 2-1 thanks to a pair of qualifying victories (6-4, 5-7, 6-4 at the 2019 Montreal Masters and 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 at the 2021 Paris Masters).

Grass should give Paul a nice opportunity to build on his 21-9 match record this season. The 13th-ranked American reached a pair of grass-court quarterfinals in 2022, finished runner-up in Eastbourne last summer, and his two most recent Wimbledon results are fourth round and third round. Popyrin, who beat Rinky Hijikata 6-4, 6-4 in the opening round, has a losing record on grass all time (17-18). The 49th-ranked Aussie is a big server, but he is more comfortable on clay as someone who has relatively long strokes and also likes high bounces. Unfortunately for Popyrin, the reality is that Paul would likely be too good for him on any surface right now.

Pick: Paul in 2