The tennis tournaments at the Paris Olympics continue with 17 men’s singles matches on Sunday. The quest for Gold features some of the top players in the sport. As always, we here at LastWordOnTennis will predict all matches for you. We split the 17 matches into four articles. The other articles feature Rafael Nadal vs Marton Fucsovics, Alexander Zverev vs Jaume Munar and Casper Ruud vs Taro Daniel. These matches are predicted by Yesh Ginsburg, Ateet Shrivastava, and Damian Kust. Who do you think will move on to Round 2?
We will link to our other Olympic predictions, including doubles, at the bottom of the article. Enjoy!
Paris Olympics Men’s Day 2 Predictions
Alex de Minaur (Australia) vs Jan-Lennard Struff (Germany)
Yesh
de Minaur is rising through the rankings. He doesn’t have the power to contend with the absolute elites, but he can beat everyone else—even solid players like Struff.
Prediction: de Minaur in 2
Ateet
Both these players are having their best season and would look to make an impact at the Paris Olympics. Alex De Minaur played a great match when these two last met at the French Open but his fitness is questioned. Jan-Lennard Struff has played recently on clay and has more preparation coming into this match.
Prediction: Struff in 3
Damian
De Minaur beating Struff at Roland Garros earlier this year was a bit of a surprise, usually this matchup on clay is expected to look the other way round. Now we don’t know if the Australian recovered from the injury he picked up at Wimbledon, so maybe this is a good chance for Struff to avenge that Paris loss from a couple of months ago.
Prediction: Struff in 3
Alejandro Tabilo (Chile) vs Roman Safiullin (Neutral)
Yesh
On a hard court I’d take Safiullin’s power, even if he can be very inconsistent at times. On clay, where Tabilo thrives, I’ll take the Chilean, who is in the midst of a career-best season and only improving.
Prediction: Tabilo in 3
Ateet
Tabilo has been very impressive this season and has reached a final on all three surfaces at the ATP level. He has won two titles and played some great tennis against top players. Safiullin’s season has not gone as planned after his impressive 2023. He has won only eight matches this year and just one on clay at the tour level. Tabilo has a clear upper hand.
Prediction: Tabilo in 2
Damian
Tabilo suffered an opening-round defeat to Matteo Berrettini in Kitzbuhel, but that’s clearly not something one should be ashamed of right now. He’s still in solid form and has a lot more to offer as a clay-courter than Safiullin. The Russian would need to find one of his occasional peak performances and they’re pretty rare of late.
Prediction: Tabilo in 3
Francisco Cerundolo (Argentina) vs Tomas Barrios Vera (Chile)
Yesh
Cerundolo is better and likes the clay. The only question might be fatigue, as he progressed far in Umag right before this event.
Prediction: Cerundolo in 2
Ateet
Cerundolo has had an up-and-down season with stretches of great tennis and some dull results. He has played a lot of matches on clay after Wimbledon and looks ready to have a good showing at his first Olympics. Barrios Vera recently won a Challenger title and will come into this match with confidence. However, Cerundolo is a level or two above his recent opponents.
Prediction: Cerundolo in 2
Damian
Barrios Vera is coming off two excellent weeks at the Challenger level with nine wins and one no-show in the final. That flat-hitting aggression he displayed there was pretty stunning and he only plays like that for a few events every year. Will be tough for him to overwhelm someone with a weight of shot like Cerundolo’s though.
Prediction: Cerundolo in 3
Gael Monfils (France) vs Lorenzo Musetti (Italy)
Yesh
What an amazing first-round battle this will be. Musetti is better and improving, and should be a real threat to go far here. But I just can’t imagine the French crowd letting Monfils lose.
Prediction: Monfils in 3
Ateet
These two met at this same venue two months ago at the French Open, where Musetti proved to be too strong for Monfils. The best-of-three format gives Monfils a better chance to play at his best without worrying about his endurance. This will be Monfils’ final Olympics, and he will want to have a memorable week. Musetti is in terrific form, and I believe he will have the answers to everything.
Prediction: Musetti in 3
Damian
Yet another Roland Garros rematch. Monfils had a bit of an empty tank there in the second round and generally has been doing a lot better this year in faster conditions. Maybe that’s just what it will be like at this stage of his career. Unless Musetti is tired from his Umag efforts, he’ll probably outmaneuver him again.
Prediction: Musetti in 3
Other Olympic Predictions:
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- Men’s day two singles including Casper Ruud vs Taro Daniel
- Men’s day two singles including Alexander Zverev vs Jaume Munar
- Men’s day two singles including Rafael Nadal vs Marton Fucsovics
- Women’s day two singles including Barbora Krejcikova vs Sara Sorribes Tormo
- Women’s day two singles including Caroline Wozniacki vs Mayar Sherif
- Women’s day two singles including Jessica Pegula vs Viktoriya Golubic
- Women’s day two singles including Coco Gauff vs Ajla Tomljanovic
- Men’s day two doubles including Fritz and Paul vs Auger-Aliassime and Raonic
- Men’s day two doubles including Tsitsipas and Tsitsipas vs Borges and Cabral
- Men’s day two doubles including Murray and Evans vs Nishikori and Daniel
- Women’s day two doubles including Collins and Krawczyk vs Sakkari and Papamichail
- Women’s day two doubles including Garcia and Parry vs Schuurs and Rus
Main Photo Syndication: The Enquirer
