Ugo Humbert has never been in any situation like this and he may not know any better than to think he might actually have a chance against Novak Djokovic. Benoit Paire, on the other hand, has been in his upcoming situation far too many times heading into Monday at Wimbledon.
(1) Novak Djokovic vs. Ugo Humbert
It has been mostly smooth sailing for Djokovic as he bids for a fifth Wimbledon title and second in a row. The world No. 1 dropped a set to Hubert Hurkacz on Friday but still got the job done 7-5, 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4. Djokovic preceded that relatively competitive contest with straight-set beatdowns of Philipp Kohlshreiber and Denis Kudla. He is a ridiculous 30-2 in his last 32 matches at the All-England Club and one of those two losses was via retirement (against Tomas Berdych in the 2017 quarterfinals).
Up next for the top-seeded Serb on Monday is a first-ever meeting with Humbert, whose appearance in the second week is nothing short of shocking. It is true that the 21-year-old Frenchman had already been making a name for himself this season, but he was still just 8-16 lifetime at the ATP level prior to arriving at the All-England Club. Humbert got a fifth-set retirement from Gael Monfils in round one, took care of Marcel Granollers 6-4, 7-6(3), 7-5, and then upset Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 7-5, 6-3. This will be a good experience for the world No. 66, but it’s one he may not be ready for–in part because has never played against anyone in the top 15.
Pick: Djokovic in 3 losing 8-10 games
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(23) Roberto Bautista Agut vs. (26) Benoit Paire
One of the most lopsided–and weirdly so–matchups in all of tennis will add another chapter to its extensive history on Monday. Bautista Agut and Paire have faced each other on eight previous occasions, and Bautista Agut is sweeping the head-to-head series with a hard-to-believe 8-0 advantage (6-0 at the ATP main-draw level). The Spaniard is 19-3 in total sets at Paire’s expense after most recently prevailing 6-3, 6-3 two years ago in Chennai. In their only previous Wimbledon encounter, the Frenchman actually won the first two sets only to eventually succumb 2-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.
Sure, this not a great matchup for Paire. The world No. 32 has one of the worst forehands in the top 100 and Bautista Agut is an intelligent counter-puncher who can induce long rallies and has no trouble exploiting opponents’ weakest shots. But more important than game styles is the fact this has simply become a mental issue for Paire. He has zero confidence against the 31-year-old and victories over Juan Ignacio Londero, Miomir Kecmanovic (via retirement), an Jiri Vesely won’t do much to change that. Bautista Agut is coming off an impressive 6-3, 7-6(3), 6-1 rout of Karen Khachanov and something similar should be expected on Monday.
Pick: Bautista Agut in 3
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Wow, I had no idea about the H2H between Paire and RBA. Paire has enough mental issues on a tennis court; he doesn’t need another one.
it’s hard to believe isn’t it
RBA and Djoker in three
Bautista Agut 3-0
Djokovic 3-0
Djoko’s draw is such a joke! I mean Humbert in R4? The guy just couldn’t do anything right against Djoko – poor ROS, his own serve returned with interest, his BH so error prone and his FH shots so wild!.
If only FAA didn’t tense up to lose in R3, maybe he would do better than Humbert against Djoko. Djoko didn’t even need to do anything special and he’s already 2 sets to love up in an hour!
I think in Djoko’s half of the draw, the only guy that could be competitive against him is Agut, provided Agut is able to come through to the SF to meet him. I doubt Raonic or Pella from that quarter is able to trouble Djoko.