Day 2 of Wimbledon features American Jenson Brooksby and serve and volley specialist Feliciano Lopez in action. We have predictions for all the day 2 matches including Nick Kyrgios match.
Jenson Brooksby vs Mikhail Kukushkin
Damian Kust: Last month was pretty awful for Jenson Brooskby. Mikhail Kukushkin is an underrated grass-courter, hitting flat balls and low-bouncing balls that are very uncomfortable for the opponents to deal with. The American won’t be as tripped up by them as some others could be, but it’s still a tight matchup on Brooksby’s current form. Kukushkin in 5
Jakub Bobro: It’s tough to know what to expect as Brooksby enters his first Wimbledon. On one hand, the young American broke through to the main tour on grass, reaching the final of Newport last year. On the other, Brooksby’s serve remains his biggest weakness and he went 1-3 this grass season, including a loss to Hugo Gaston and a 2-6 2-6 loss to Jack Draper last week. Kukushkin is not the most consistent grass performer, but he reached the second week at Wimbledon before. The Kazakh was very impressive in qualifying, allowing Lorenzo Giustino just three games, retiring Philipp Kohlschreiber, and outbattling the rising star Zsombor Piros. I see Kukushkin really playing hard for the upset here and his unusually flat game will be tough for the 6ft4 Brooksby to deal with. Kukushkin in 4
Pedro Martinez vs Alex Molcan
Damian: Pedro Martinez has been in poor form in the past couple of months, while Alex Molcan hasn’t adapted to grass yet, losing to Tallon Griekspoor at both Mallorca and Halle. The Slovakian should have the higher ceiling on this surface, but it’s fairly close. Molcan in 4
Jakub: Martinez has struggled mightily since April, losing eight out of his last ten matches, one of his wins being a retirement win over Alejandro Davidovich Fokina last week. Molcan played his first grass season, beating Miomir Kecmanovic and losing twice to Tallon Griekspoor. The Slovak came very close to qualifying here last season and now has a brilliant chance for a winning debut. Molcan in 3
Botic van de Zandschulp vs Feliciano Lopez
Damian: Unless he suddenly improves drastically, this is probably the last time we’re watching Feliciano Lopez at Wimbledon. His only win this year came on grass, but it was against Bradley Klahn, who’s actually 0-4 in 2022 and coming back after a serious injury. Beating someone like Botic van de Zandschulp is a completely different ask. van de Zandschulp in 3
Jakub: The Dutchman played his first full grass season, looking very good as he beat Grigor Dimitrov en route to the Queen’s Club semifinals. Up against him will be Lopez who has looked more alive in recent matches but would have needed a much more favorable draw to be able to win. Van De Zandschulp should advance over the 40-year-old. Van de Zandschulp in 4
Alexei Popyrin vs Hugo Gaston
Damian: The two have just faced at an exhibition in Hurlingham with Hugo Gaston winning in straight sets. However, with how unpredictable the Frenchman is and Alexei Popyrin having way more obvious grass weapons, the same result might not happen again. Close call. Popyrin in 5
Jakub: Popyrin impressed at grass Challengers, reaching semifinals at Nottingham and Ilkley, coming in as a lucky loser in the latter. Gaston got destroyed by Liam Broady 6-0 6-2 in Eastbourne but defeated Jenson Brooksby in Den Bosch. The two played each other at the Hurlingham exhibition last week with the Frenchman coming out on top. I can see the tricky Gaston being an interesting challenge but when the push comes to shove, I see Popyrin winning on grass. Popyrin in 5
Main Photo:
