The tennis tournaments at the Paris Olympics start with 15 men’s singles matches on Saturday. 64 men will begin their quest for Gold, and we’ll rapidly get to the winner in a bit over a week. As always, we here at LastWordOnTennis will predict all of the matches for you. We split the 15 matches into four articles. The other articles feature Novak Djokovic vs Matthew Ebden, Carlos Alcaraz vs Hedy Habib, and Daniil Medvedev vs Rinky Hijikata. Predicting these matches are Damian Kust, Shane Black, and Yesh Ginsburg. Who do you think will move on to Round 2?
As a special for the Olympics, we will also be predicting all of the other Day 1 matches, including doubles. We will link to our other Olympic predictions at the bottom of the article. Enjoy!
Paris Olympics Men’s Day 1 Predictions
Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada) vs Marcos Giron (United States)
Damian:
Two players who aren’t that good in slower clay conditions, but it still feels like Auger-Aliassime is a class ahead. Giron just picked up that maiden title in Newport and might be playing a bit pressure-free here. His baseline shots just aren’t that good though and this is a surface where you need that consistent depth.
Prediction: Auger-Aliassime in 2
Shane:
Giron is coming off his maiden title in Newport. His consistency from the ground is at an all time high. However, Auger-Aliassime has found his form over the past few months. He reached the second week of the French Open and should feel confident in his game on the clay.
Prediction: Auger-Aliassime in 3
Yesh:
Giron somehow always finds his best tennis for the biggest events. His best tennis isn’t enough to really trouble the Canadian, though.
Prediction: Auger-Aliassime in 3
Dan Evans (Great Britain) vs Moez Echargui (Tunisia)
Damian:
Echargui got this chance by winning the African Games and against most of the draw, he wouldn’t really stand a shot. Evans is very average on clay though and is in the middle of a truly horrendous season. But he knows how to peak when he’s playing for his country and will likely grind this out if he needs to.
Prediction: Evans in 2
Shane:
Evans has not had the best season, but he is the heavy favorite against the World No. 373. Echargui has only beaten one Top 100 player in his career. If Evans doesn’t implode, he should have no problem in this match.
Prediction: Evans in 2
Yesh:
Even on clay, Evans is just too good in this matchup. It won’t be close.
Prediction: Evans in 2
Novak Djokovic (Serbia) vs Matthew Ebden (Australia)
Damian:
Skip. Ebden hasn’t played a singles match in two years and while he was in the Top 40 back in the day, his clay win rate for the whole career is about 33%. The most interesting thing here will be whether Djokovic is wearing the knee brace, but even that won’t tell us much about his form going into the rest of the event.
Prediction: Djokovic in 2
Shane:
Is Djokovic 100% healthy? Likely not, but that should not matter in this first-round matchup. The 24x Grand Slam champion is on the hunt for Olympic Gold.
Prediction: Djokovic in 2
Yesh:
Djokovic has given no indication that he’s retiring anytime soon, but this is almost certainly his final Olympics. After winning Bronze in 2008, his Olympic results have been disappointing, to say the least. I don’t know if he can win Gold this year, but it’s his last chance for the one achievement missing from his illustrious career. He’s not falling at the first hurdle.
Prediction: Djokovic in 2
Other Olympic Predictions:
Women’s Singles Featuring Bianca Andreescu vs Clara Tauson
Women’s Singles Featuring Iga Swiatek vs Irina-Camelia Begu
Women’s Singles Featuring Karolina Muchova vs Leylah Fernandez
Women’s Singles Featuring Danielle Collins vs Laura Siegemund
Women’s Singles Featuring Including Naomi Osaka vs Angelique Kerber
Men’s Doubles Featuring Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz vs Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni
Men’s Doubles Featuring Luciano Darderi and Lorenzo Musetti vs Nicolas Jarry and Alejandro Tabilo
Women’s Doubles Featuring Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula vs Daria Saville and Ellen Perez
Women’s Doubles Featuring Angelique Kerber and Laura Siegemund vs Katie Boulter and Heather Watson
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
