Stuttgart R2 previews and predictions: Zverev vs. Brown, Auger-Aliassime vs. Simon

Alexander Zverev will kick off his Stuttgart campaign against fellow German Dustin Brown on Thursday afternoon. A quarterfinal spot will also be at stake when Felix Auger-Aliassime goes head-to-head with Gilles Simon.

(1) Alexander Zverev vs. (Q) Dustin Brown

Zverev and Brown will be squaring off for the second time in their careers and for the first time at the ATP level when they clash in round two of the Mercedes Cup on Thursday. Their only previous encounter came five years ago at the Mons Challenger, where Zverev–then 17–prevailed 7-6(6), 6-3. Brown has continued to toil away in the proverbial minor leagues of tennis while mixing in occasional stops on the main tour, and he has finally resurfaced now that the season has transitioned to his favorite time. Always dangerous on grass, the world No. 170 qualified for the Stuttgart main draw and then ousted John Millman 6-4, 7-6(3) on Tuesday.

Two previous trips to this event were unsuccessful for Zverev, who lost his opener in 2014 and got bounced out in the second round one year later. He returns as the No. 1 seed and with his confidence restored thanks to a strong finish to the clay-court swing (title in Geneva and quarterfinal performance at the French Open). Brown can at least be competitive on the green stuff, but Zverev is simply in a different class.

Pick: Zverev in 2

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Gilles Simon vs. (7) Felix Auger-Aliassime

Auger-Aliassime played his first grass-court match on the main tour on Tuesday and passed the test with a 7-5, 6-3 defeat of Ernests Gulbis. It hardly matters what surface the 18-year-old Canadian finds under his feet these days, as his 2019 exploits include a runner-up finish on the red clay of Rio de Janeiro and a semifinal run in Miami as a qualifier. Despite such a heavy workload in the early stages of his career, Auger-Aliassime is well-rested right now–unfortunately for the wrong reasons. He missed the French Open due to a thigh injury.

Up next for the world No. 21 on Thursday is first-ever meeting with Simon. At the other end of the career spectrum, Simon is 34 years old and registers at 37th in the rankings with a modest 14-13 record for the season. The Frenchman is still just 3-5 in his last eight matches after beating Peter Gojowyczk 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the opening round. A huge edge in current form goes to Auger-Aliassime, who will have too much firepower for Simon on this surface–or any surface, for that matter.

Pick: Auger-Aliassime in 2

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