Monday means Day 1 of the 2023 Wimbledon Championships. Half of the first round will be contested, which means we get to see 32 men’s matches. As always, our writers here at LWOT will try to share our thoughts on all of the matches for you. We split the 32 matches between eight articles. Our other articles for Day 1 feature Felix Auger-Aliassime vs Filip Krajinovic, Lorenzo Musetti vs Juan Pablo Varillas, Nick Kyrgios vs David Goffin, Hubert Hurkacz vs Albert Ramos-Vinolas, Casper Ruud vs Laurent Lokoli, Andrey Rublev vs Max Purcell, and John Isner vs Jaume Munar. Predicting this set of matches are Jack Edward, Damian Kust, and Andreas Pelekis. Who do you think will advance?
Wimbledon Day 1 Men’s Predictions
Richard Gasquet vs Corentin Moutet
Jack:
Corentin Moutet is persistent enough to make this difficult. He’ll slice and scrap his way to a fifth set whether Richard Gasquet likes it or not. The veteran is still sharp as a tack, however, and will make it through, regardless of how long it drags on.
Prediction: Gasquet in 5
Damian:
This certainly should be extraordinary in terms of aesthetic pleasure. The two-time Wimbledon semifinalist is the favorite. While these runs happened a long time ago, it seems like even at this stage of his career he still gets a boost anytime he’s out there on the grass.
Prediction: Gasquet in 5
Andreas:
Gasquet’s stunning upset over Tsitsipas was more about Gasquet winning the match as opposed to Tsitsipas losing the match. Gasquet fired some vintage backhands late in the third set, reminiscent of his prime form that led him to two Wimbledon semifinals in 2007 and 2015. Moutet hasn’t had a terrible grass court season, but he should have been more competitive in the matches he’s lost. He also hasn’t benefited from his lackluster conversion of break points throughout the grass season, something that needs to change against Gasquet. Gasquet will have to hold up physically against a player that gets a lot of balls back, but look for him to grind through.
Prediction: Gasquet in 4
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Brandon Nakashima vs Jordan Thompson
Jack:
Jordan Thompson is riding a great wave of form but his game doesn’t amount to a whole lot on return, with ATP regulars like Brandon Nakashima able to match him on serve. Despite Nakashima’s dodgy form, let’s not forget he made it to the fourth round of Wimbledon last year. I like his own ability to hold serve and backhand to pick apart Thompson.
Prediction: Nakashima in 4
Damian:
Thompson is coming off a pretty great grass swing and he’s improved his first serve so much over the years. Would be amazing for him if he could turn it into a Wimbledon run at some point. This is far from an easy draw to start things off though.
Prediction: Thompson in 5
Andreas:
An interesting first round matchup, with the winner ultimately a new victim to Djokovic’s torture chamber on Centre Court. Both players are solid athletes on the grass, with Thompson having the slightly better grass court season thus far. With the Aussie narrowly losing an ATP final against Griekspoor, he’ll want to capitalize and finish the grass season strong. Nakashima is also solid on grass, as the American lost in the fourth round of Wimbledon last year; he headlined Centre Court against Nick Kyrgios and fell in five tough sets. This match could be a five-setter itself, with the winner coming down to a couple key breaks of serve.
Prediction: Nakashima in 5
Alex Molcan vs Mikael Ymer
Jack:
Alex Molcan is one of the few top players that loves clay so much that he forewent a grass warm up to play a Challenger on his favorite surface. Mikael Ymer likes a fast ball and should be able to dominate plenty of the proceedings here.
Prediction: Ymer in 4
Damian:
In theory, grass shouldn’t be that amazing for Ymer, but the quality of his movement is spectacular even in faster conditions, sometimes especially in them. Molcan’s not a grass-courter at all and I think the Swede should advance here.
Prediction: Ymer in 4
Andreas:
Molcan interestingly chose to spend his June on hard courts at Challenger Tour level. Unfortunately for him, his last match ended with Molcan winning just one game. Inexperienced on the grass, this should be a great chance for Ymer to pick up a Wimbledon win. All of Ymer’s grass court losses have been in deciding sets, so he’ll have to focus and close out this match well.
Prediction: Ymer in 4
Lorenzo Musetti vs Juan Pablo Varillas
Jack:
Keep watching Lorenzo Musetti. His game is growing week-by-week–not at the rate of Alcaraz’s but it’s definitely improving, particularly his ability to deal with faster serves. Juan Pablo Varillas remains a clay-courter through and through.
Prediction: Musetti in 3
Damian:
Musetti is one of the most surprising players to me this grass-court season, serving flat bombs and using his creativity way smarter than before. This should be easy enough for him; Varillas still hasn’t beaten a Top 200 player on hard court or grass.
Prediction: Musetti in 3
Andreas:
Will Varillas produce some more magic in Grand Slams? Varillas took out two seeds in the French Open, becoming one of the most enticing storylines of the first week. Yet, Varillas has never won a match on grass, and even more strikingly has shied away from the surface to play on clay in past years. This is only Varillas’ second match on the green, and going up against Musetti should be too much of a challenge. As long as the Italian serves well, he should prevail easily. Keep an eye out for Musetti’s backhand, a shot that often breaks down on faster courts.
Prediction: Musetti in 3
Main Photo Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
