The Paris Olympics 2024 promises a thrilling week of tennis, featuring a whole host of tennis elites. As players from all around the world converge on this iconic stage, fans can look forward to thrilling encounters right from the start. The first-round matches often set the tone for the excitement and drama that will emerge throughout the tournament. The most anticipated first-round matchups that are certain to grab viewers’ attention are highlighted in this article. We also have a separate article looking at the five best women’s matches.
Best Men’s First Round Matches
Rafael Nadal vs Marton Fucsovics
Rafael Nadal (Spain) will start his final Olympic campaign against Marton Fucsovics (Hungary). Fucsovics has a knack of finding himself against top players in the first rounds of big events. The Hungarian player won the title in Bucharest in April but has lost four consecutive matches since then. He has won two titles in his career and both have come on clay. This will be Fucsovics’ first appearance at the Olympics. It will be a big occasion for him to play one of the greatest players ever on such a big stage.
Nadal has a rough draw to the Gold Medal but his focus will be on the first round. Fucsovics is capable of playing some high-quality tennis and Nadal can’t afford to have a bad day. This being the final Olympics of Nadal’s career makes this special as he has been one of the most successful male tennis players in Olympic history. Nadal will play on the most successful court of his career, where he won 14 French Open titles. He lost his last match on this court against Alexander Zverev and will hope for a different result this time.
Gael Monfils vs Lorenzo Musetti
Gael Monfils (France) has been a legend of French tennis and is towards the twilight of his career. He is playing in his last Olympics and this being his home Olympics makes it even more special. The Frenchman has made the quarterfinals of the Olympics twice. Monfils had a good grass season, winning five of his seven matches. He is drawn against Lorenzo Musetti (Italy) in the first round. Musetti ended Monfils’ run at the French Open this year in this very venue without losing a set.
Musetti is in the form of his life and is playing some great tennis. He has won 15 of his last 20 matches and with Jannik Sinner out of the Olympics, he is the top-seeded Italian and a dark horse to win a medal. Playing in his second Olympic games and on his favorite surface, Musetti would want to get off to a great start. It won’t be easy as Monfils will look for revenge with the fans behind him at every step.
Arthur Fils vs Matteo Arnaldi
These two meet again at the same place two months later. Matteo Arnaldi (Italy) won convincingly the last time they played and has never lost to Arthur Fils (France) in three meetings. However, Fils has made some strides in the last month or so and will come into this match on the back of winning the biggest title of his career against Alexander Zverev. Fils is deemed as the future of French tennis and is certainly going in the right direction. Arnaldi has lost his last two matches on clay and would need to play at his best to keep his record against Fils. The aggression of Fils against the variety of Arnaldi promises to be a great contest. Both are competing in their first Olympics, and the atmosphere will be electrifying, with the local crowd supporting Fils.
Stan Wawrinka vs Pavel Kotov
Winning the Gold in doubles in the 2008 Olympics is one of the highlights of Stan Wawrinka’s career. Wawrinka (Switzerland) will be playing in his final Olympics and will look to make it memorable. He has been struggling for form this year with just four wins all season. One of his losses came to Pavel Kotov at the French Open. They played a great match with lots of entertaining rallies and the intensity was off the charts. Kotov has been in horrible form since that win against Wawrinka but his variety is incredible and that’s what hurt the Swiss in their last encounter. This is going to be a fun ride if they can deliver anything close to their last meeting.
Alex De Minaur vs Jan-Lennard Struff
Two of the in-form players of this season also met at the French Open this year. Alex De Minaur (Australia) and Jan Lennard Struff (Germany) are having their best season on tour and performing well at the Paris Olympics will be one of their goals. De Minaur will be participating in his first Olympics while Struff has already made the quarterfinals at the Tokyo Olympics. Their last meeting at Roland Garros was a bit disappointing as Struff seemed way off compared to his previous matches but hopefully, it will be much more competitive this time around.
The aggressive game of Struff spearheaded by his big serve and forehand is a great contrast in matchup with the counterpunching ability of De Minaur. The Australian’s fitness is still in doubt after he had to withdraw from his quarterfinal match at Wimbledon and Struff will make sure to test him throughout the match.
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
