The King of Clay Rafael Nadal starts his 2019 French Open journey against German Yannick Hanfmann, rising stars Rudolf Molleker, Borna Coric, and Christian Garin are also in action as Steen Kirby and Yesh Ginsburg offer up their predictions. You can also examine our predictions for matches featuring Novak Djokovic and Frances Tiafoe as we predict almost every Day 2 match. Our predictions start with Rafael Nadal vs Yannick Hanfmann.
Rafael Nadal vs Yannick Hanfmann
Yesh: It’s hard to imagine a better first-round match for Rafael Nadal here. He’ll get some practice in against someone with a lot of firepower, but the German won’t be any sort of threat at all. Nadal in 3
Steen: Hanfmann is happy to play in this tournament and get his round 1 check, I don’t see him challenging Nadal at all as the Spaniard should ease into the second round. The only question is whether Hanfmann can win 3 or more games in any set, as Rafa will be in cruise control. Nadal in 3
Aljaz Bedene vs Borna Coric
Yesh: Coric hasn’t stood out much this year, but he is a very talented youngster and likely a future Grand Slam champion. Bedene is solid on clay and could make some sets close, but ultimately I don’t expect this to be a challenge. Coric in 3
Steen: Borna Coric has been clutch in tight matches this year but has struggled to be consistent. He is capable on the clay though and Bedene is well off his formerly career best pace. Clay is his best surface but I don’t think it will matter as Coric should ease his way into Round 2 and perhaps further. Coric in 3
Reilly Opelka vs Christian Garin
Yesh: Opelka has a huge serve, which means he can always be in a match. Garin is just too good, though. There are some minor injury concerns for the Chilean. As long as he’s healthy, though, Garin should cruise. Garin in 3
Steen: Opelka has surprised on clay. He’s a tall American that draws comparisons to John Isner with his booming serve and still developing groundstrokes. He can be effective coming to net as well and he would have a shot against most possible opponents. Garin is not the best of draws though. Clay is his best surface and he’s a rising young gun from South America. If Garin is fit he should survive, perhaps with tiebreaks. Garin in 4
Rudolf Molleker vs Alexander Bublik
Yesh: Molleker qualified for the French Open, and he’s an under-the-radar NextGen name to watch out for. He’ll start making a statement with a win here. Molleker in 3
Steen: Molleker has a great draw here. The young German had a tough set of qualifying matches but he gets an opponent in Bublik that has had a worse year and has lost four straight matches despite his direct entry into the tournament. Molleker is set to dominate as Bublik appears here to collect his first round check. Molleker in 3
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