Steen Kirby, Yesh Ginsburg, and Nurein Ahmed are on hand to offer their previews and predictions of day 7 action at Roland Garros including matches featuring Rafael Nadal and Juan Martin Del Potro.
Rafael Nadal vs. Richard Gasquet
Steen: Gasquet struggles to beat elite competition, the Paris crowd will back him, but Nadal is going to prove too much given Gasquet’s mental block. Nadal in 3
Yesh: If Gasquet can learn from what Bolelli did and try to copy him, he may be able to make a match of this. If the Frenchman insists on playing his usual style, he will be handily beaten. Nadal in 3
Nurein: Rafael Nadal is odds-on favorite to win the whole tournament and I have no reason whatsoever to think he will not. Gasquet has been terrific in the early two rounds, but the funny thing is that even if he brings his best tennis he is unlikely to topple the Spaniard. The form that nadal is in, combined with the crazy head-to-head record which stands at 15-0 , there is only one outcome. Nadal in 3
Max Marterer vs. Jurgen Zopp
Steen: Marterer is the better player, including on clay. The young German has had a career year, and though Zopp was once a promising talent this is already one of the best results of his career, a career that has been marred by injuries. Look for Marterer’s joy to be extended. Marterer in 3
Yesh: Who would have ever seen this match coming? Both are great stories, but Marterer has looked better so far this tournament. Marterer in 4
Nurein: watched the last two sets of Marterer’s brilliant comeback win over Shapovalov, and boy does this guy have talent. I was surprised he was only 22 and he is quite possibly the least spoken player of his age. Jurgen Zopp was handed a second chance into the main albeit as lucky loser and he has made the most of it. Unfortunately for the Estonian following those two back-to-back five setters, he is playing a very talented and fresh opponent. I can’t see anything but a Marterer win. Marterer in 3
Diego Schwartzman vs. Borna Coric
Steen: Schwartzman on clay should have an edge on paper but I like Coric’s potential and I don’t think he’ll miss out on this opportunity. He also has a h2h win on clay earlier this year against the Argentine. Coric in 4
Yesh: Two up-and-comers facing off, with a shot at Nadal in the quarterfinals just two matches away. Coric has more potential, but I think that Schwartman is playing better right now. Schwartzman in 4
Nurein: This match along with the Fognini-Edmund battle are the two matches I’m really looking forward to in the third round. Schwartzmann is natural clay court player, and Borna Coric has enjoyed a very good season up to this point. Coric also beat an in-form Kohlschreiber in the previous round. This is a hard one to call. Both players like to take charge from the baseline. The Croat beat DSS in their only meeting on clay last year en route to win the title in Marrakech and I can see this one going the distance. I am picking Coric to win again, just. Coric in 5
Fabio Fognini vs. Kyle Edmund
Steen: Clay is Fognini’s best surface, and though Edmund has made some major strides this season, I still have him as the underdog here. Expect a close contest with the Italian’s shotmaking winning the day. Fognini in 5
Yesh: Kyle Edmund’s surge in the past year has been amazing, and his success in this tournament is just another surprise. Fognini has one of the best clay games in the world, and will win as long as he can keep his focus. Fognini in 4
Nurein: This for me is the match of round three. The Italian no.1 against the British no.1. Both players have recorded some notable wins on the clay this year. Fognini of course beat Thiem in Rome and Edmund beat Djokovic in Madrid. Again, this is also a hard one to call. For me, Fognini is a slight favorite given the surface. What I like to about the Italian is his ability to go for his shots midway through the rally. Edmund might try to ping the ball back especially on his backhand where he won’t have much authority, but Fognini is not afraid to take risks and end the rallies either by firing a winner or hitting the tramlines. I think that is where the match will be won, and Fognini is a smart pick here. Fognini in 4
Albert Ramos vs. Juan Martin Del Potro
Steen: Ramos has a punchers chance but JMDP has shown improvement on clay since the tournament started. He has a real shot at making a very deep run and I don’t see the Spaniard tripping him up. Del Potro in 3
Yesh: Albert Ramos Vinolas is a good player and probably likes the clay better than del Potro does. But del Potro is finally finding that 2009 form that saw him be near-unbeatable on this surface. Del Potro in 3
Nurein: Albert Ramos-Vinolas has been on terrible form and the fact he has got this far is because he beat a qualifier and Kazakh journeyman Mikhail Kukushkin. Anything but a Delpo win would be a massive surprise. Del Potro in 3
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