Day 2 at the ATP National Bank Open (formerly known as the Rogers Cup) in Montreal is full of action after a rain-shortened opening day. As always, we here at LWOT will share our thoughts on all the matches. We share the day’s 16 new matches (there are also some holdovers from Monday) in four articles. In addition to this one, the other articles feature Nick Kyrgios vs Sebastian Baez, Matteo Berrettini vs Pablo Carreno Busta, and Fabio Fognini vs Holger Rune.
ATP Montreal Day 2 Predictions
Maxime Cressy vs Aslan Karatsev
Head-to-head: first meeting
Karatsev has not looked right for most of the year, and Cressy brings an unusual style that he may find extra frustrating in light of his recent difficulties. For his part, Cressy has recent made two finals, winning one, and sits at a career-high ranking. Karatsev was a decent hard-courter before the slump, but the momentum is all on Cressy’s side, and the Canadian crowd will likely be pulling for him. This might not be the match to get the Russian back on track.
Prediction: Cressy in 2
Gael Monfils vs Pedro Martinez
Head-to-head: Martinez 1-0
Gael Monfils is back on court after three months off, and it’s always hard to know what a player will produce in his first match back. He’s otherwise had a good year, including a title, a quarterfinal appearance at the Australian Open, and a victory over Daniil Medvedev. That all happened early, though; but Monfils does love the hard court, where he owns ten titles. Martinez has not looked very good outside a title on clay in February, and has only nine hard court matches on the year. Monfils should be able to take this, but it might be sloppy.
Prediction: Monfils in 3
Cameron Norrie vs Brandon Nakashima
Head-to-head: Norrie 2-1
The British #1 has put together a very good season for himself, with 35 wins and two titles. Most recently he is coming off the final in Los Cabos and the semis at Wimbledon, and his confidence should be very high. Nakashima has not improved much in the rankings this year, still sitting outside the top 50, although he is a decent hard courter and has beaten Norrie on the surface. But Norrie is very strong right now, and should be able to get the job done.
Prediction: Norrie in 2
Hubert Hurkacz vs Emil Ruusuvuori
Head-to-head: Ruusuvuori 1-0
Hurkacz gets an instant rematch here, as Ruusuvuori just beat him in Washington. Hurkacz is having a better year overall, but their records on hard courts this year are almost identical, as is their win percentage. Both have played decently recently, and Hurkacz’s capabilities were on full display in Halle in June, where he dispatched Felix, Kyrgios, Cressy, and Medvedev. That level of talent leads me to give Hurkacz the nod here despite Ruusuvuori’s recent win, but it could obviously be close.
Prediction: Hurkacz in 3
Main Photo from Getty.
