Alex Molcan is working with Marian Vajda, the former coach of Novak Djokovic, can Vajda help steer Molcan towards an upset of Djokovic in the second round of the French Open? Our panelists look at that match and have predictions for every day 4 match as the second round gets underway at Roland Garros.
Novak Djokovic vs Alex Molcan
Yesh Ginsburg: It’s Djokovic against his former coach for the first time in his career. Marian Vajda will have Molcan well-prepared, but there’s not much you can do against such elite talent. Djokovic in 3
Damian Kust: This is a very interesting storyline with Novak Djokovic facing his long-time coach, Marian Vajda. Tactically, Alex Molcan will be prepared better than anyone else could have been against the World No. 1. But will that matter in terms of the result? The Slovakian can hang with Djokovic for a while, but if the two-time champion is playing as well as he’s been recently, he should be advancing to the third round. Djokovic in 4
Bernabe Zapata Miralles vs Taylor Fritz
Yesh: Fritz struggled in his opener but still is the better player in better form right now. I think he’ll survive again. Fritz in 4
Damian: It was a very shaky start from Taylor Fritz, going five against Santiago Rodriguez Taverna. He’s going to face another qualifier with a huge forehand now, but Bernabe Zapata Miralles is a much more complete player than the Argentinian. Fritz will really need to step up his game and on a clay court, he might not be able to do so against someone as competent as Zapata Miralles. Zapata Miralles in 5
Botic van de Zandschulp vs Fabio Fognini
Yesh: Fognini has been relatively quiet this year, but his talent is still otherworldly and van de Zandschulp prefers hard courts to clay. Fognini in 4
Damian: Botic van de Zandschulp beat Pavel Kotov in a high-quality first-round match. The Dutchman has all the tools to win this one. Even if Fabio Fognini is motivated and playing well, van de Zandschulp will trouble him with his brutal consistency and huge serve. One of the most underrated assets of the Dutchman is his movement in defense, which should be a huge factor here. van de Zandschulp in 4
Karen Khachanov vs Hugo Dellien
Yesh: Dellien took out Dominic Thiem with minimal trouble in Round 1, but he’s going to get a lot of trouble in Round 2. Khachanov is a better player right now, especially when he finds his form. Khachanov in 4
Damian: Hugo Dellien had a great performance to beat Dominic Thiem, but was essentially gifted two points in each of his service games due to the Austrian’s poor returning. This will be much tougher as Karen Khachanov is so strong physically and has a lot more power. Dellien constructs points extremely well, but as he doesn’t possess a big weapon, he’ll probably struggle here. Khachanov in 3
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