Leonardo Mayer
The veteran Argentinian finds himself at #68 in the world entering the French Open. He got off to a very solid start in round 1, defeating Jiri Vesely in 3 comfortable sets. Clay has historically been his preferred surface, boasting a 12-9 career record at Roland Garros.
Diego Schwartzman
Despite his diminutive side, Schwartzman has made a name for himself on tour and is the #17 seed for this tournament. He won a 5-set epic against Martin Fucsovics last time out, breaking serve 10 times in the process. His elite return game and defensive ability make him a real threat on clay.
Prediction: Schwartzman -4.5 games
In this battle between compatriots, I’m giving the edge to the younger Schwartzman here. I think he’s a much better player now than Mayer, who simply doesn’t have the power to overwhelm him. Especially given Schwartzman’s propensity to break, I expect this to be over in 3 or 4 sets.
Stefanos Tsitsipas
Tsitsipas has built on an excellent 2018 campaign with a great start to 2019, seeded #6 for this year’s French Open. He made light work of Max Marterer in Round 1, winning very comfortably in straight sets. He’s had a relatively successful clay court season so far, making the final at Madrid a fortnight ago.
Hugo Dellien
The young Bolivian is on the rise after some strong recent performances, moving to #86 in the world. He had an excellent start to Roland Garros in Round 1, destroying Indian Prajnesh Gunneswaran in 3 easy sets. He also had a solid outing in Geneva last week, reaching the Quarters before losing to Alex Zverev.
Prediction: Tsitsipas 3-0 $1.65
While Dellien is on the rise, I just don’t think he can come close to Tsitsipas here. The enigmatic Greek star has an exciting and versatile game that should overwhelm his opponent in this one. I expect his strong return game to prove valuable here en route to a straight sets victory.
Grigor Dimitrov
After some poor recent form, Grigor Dimitrov finds himself unseeded for this year’s Roland Garros. That didn’t appear to matter in Round 1, as he narrowly got past Janko Tipsarevic in 5 sets. Despite flashing a ton of potential, he still as a below .500 7-8 career record at the French Open.
Marin Cilic
The Croatian veteran continues to be one of the most consistent players on tour, entering this tournament as the #11 seed. He got off to a fast start against Thomas Fabbiano in Round 1, comfortably winning in straight sets. While his powerful game is more suited to faster courts, he still has made consecutive Quarter-Finals at Roland Garros.
Prediction: Over 38.5 Games
This is a relatively tough second-round draw for Cilic against an opponent of Dimitrov’s calibre. While I think he still gets it done, it is likely to be a tightly contested battle over at least 4 sets. Given the strong serves of both of these men, I think over 38.5 games looks like a solid bet.