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 Jakub Bobro. Who do you think will advance?
Wimbledon Day 1 Men’s Predictions
J.J. Wolf vs Enzo Couacaud
Jack:
J.J. Wolf has struggled with his serve against the best in the world but generally he’s flashy enough to get the job done against lower-ranked players on a fast surface. Enzo Couacaud might light up for a set but Wolf should progress to the Round of 64.
Prediction: Wolf in 4
Damian:
Couacaud has been amazing at qualifying for Slams recently and this is just yet another example. Once he’s actually there, there usually isn’t that much he can do. This is somewhat winnable for him if he can keep holding serve, but the Wolf weaponry is bound to be too much at some point.
Prediction: Wolf in 4
Jakub:
In his first grass season, Wolf took a couple of losses at Queen’s Club after making it in as a lucky loser but the American found some form in Eastbourne. The 24-year-old beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry and Luca Van Assche before pushing Tommy Paul to a third-set tiebreak. Couacaud has qualified for the second year in a row, beating Aleksandar Kovacevic in the final qualifying round. The Frenchman pushed John Isner to five sets here last year and could be a tricky opponent for Wolf.
Prediction: Wolf in 5
[cta id=4013 type=cta]
Quentin Halys vs Dan Evans
Jack:
In February, I picked Quentin Halys as my Wimbledon dark horse. I’m sticking to it now–the Frenchman has a serve of rich quality, enough to cause Dan Evans a headache. Expect the usual grit from the Brit but I can see Halys going through.
Prediction: Halys in 4
Damian:
Halys playing Lyon and Blois on clay after Roland Garros was a baffling choice, but he kinda made it work with the title in the latter. Evans had a few Wimbledon runs in the past, not delivering in a couple of crucial matches. Think this could be one of them, despite the subpar preparation of Halys.
Prediction: Halys in 5
Jakub:
Dan Evans has struggled throughout the year, 9-17 on the season, and he hasn’t managed to find his groove on grass so far, losing to Gabriel Diallo in Surbiton and Sebastian Korda in Queen’s Club. The 33-year-old is facing the prospect of having a losing grass season for the first time since 2014. Halys has a game that should suit grass but the Frenchman has not been able to get results on the surface, even opting to play French clay Challengers after Roland Garros, winning a title in Blois. Halys is getting some practice on grass at the Boodles but I feel that Evans’ preparedness and motivation at one of his last few Wimbledons should give him the edge.
Prediction: Evans in 4
Jannik Sinner vs Juan Manuel Cerundolo
Jack:
Jannik Sinner’s Wimbledon hopes have been in question but he’s been gifted a fairly comfortable first-round against Juan Manuel Cerundolo. There should be time for the Italian to settle into the tournament and match his quarterfinal run from last year.
Prediction: Sinner in 3
Damian:
If it was the older Cerundolo, we’d be talking of an absolute cracker (obviously impossible since they’re both seeded). The younger brother’s game simply isn’t suitable for grass whatsoever and Sinner should have an easy time blowing him off the court here.
Prediction: Sinner in 3
Jakub:
Sinner has received a nice draw to start here after showing his grass potential here last year with a quarterfinal run. The Italian did retire in his last match in Halle but gets an easy opponent to start in Juan Manuel Cerundolo, set to play just his third career match on grass, yet to win. The Argentine played Eastbourne qualifying as a lead-up, losing to Skander Mansouri in straight sets.
Prediction: Sinner in 3
Casper Ruud vs Laurent Lokoli
Jack:
Casper Ruud would rather attend a Weeknd concert than warm up on grass but that doesn’t mean he won’t bring a quality base-level to his first round against Laurent Lokoli. The two-time French Open finalist’s serve and forehand combo should get him through here.
Prediction: Ruud in 4
Damian:
Ruud has been very open about disliking grass and clearly didn’t bother to prepare himself for Wimbledon in the best way possible this year. This is a great draw for him though with Lokoli, who’s probably among the weakest players in the draw. Maybe Ruud slowly finds his footing?
Prediction: Ruud in 4
Jakub:
Ruud has shown more interest in The Weeknd concerts more than grass warm-ups but has been given a lenient draw to try and reach the third round at Wimbledon for the first time. Lokoli played his first professional grass matches this season at 28 years old, coming back on the surface after 11 years away since 2012 Junior Wimbledon. The Frenchman pulled off a couple of decent wins over Leandro Riedi and Antoine Escoffier in Ilkley qualifying but his Wimbledon qualifying run past Nicholas David Ionel, Norbert Gombos and Michael Mmoh still came as a shock.
Prediction: Ruud in 4
Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
