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, Casper Ruud vs Taro Daniel and Lorenzo Musetti vs Gael Monfils. 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
Nicolas Jarry (Chile) vs Alexei Popyrin (Australia)
Yesh
Jarry hasn’t quite had the major breakthrough so many were (and still are) expecting, but he’s a strong player who is powerful on the clay. He should be able to handle Popyrin, whose best weapon is neutralized by the surface.
Prediction: Jarry in 2
Ateet
Alexei Popyrin likes to play on clay and his best winning percentage is on dirt but he has lost his last six matches on clay which is a worrying sign. Nicolas Jarry hasn’t played much since the French Open due to injury. He has had great success on clay this year and will fancy his chances to go deep. Both these players are playing in their first Olympics. Jarry should be able to win if he finds his level.
Prediction: Jarry in 3
Damian
Jarry had some excellent moments this season, but he’s only played one match since Wimbledon. He was out for a while with an illness and then didn’t even challenge Denis Shapovalov. It still might be enough for Popyrin, who delivered a shocking performance as the defending champion in Umag.
Prediction: Jarry in 3
Jakub Mensik (Czech Republic) vs Alexander Shevchenko (Kazakhstan)
Yesh
Mensik is finally playing really well, going deep in Umag this week. Assuming he’s not fatigued from the quick turnaround, he should win this match.
Prediction: Mensik in 2
Ateet
Jakub Mensik has made his mark in his first full season on the ATP tour and has looked good whenever he has been healthy. He is coming off a solid week in Umag and will look to bring that form in his first Olympics. Shevchenko has been struggling with form this year and has not won consecutive matches on many occasions. He has the potential to make this a competitive match, but Mensik should win in the end.
Prediction: Mensik in 3
Damian
Looks like Mensik is back in good shape physically and that puts him right back on the map of young prospects. He’s got a lot more in his arsenal than Shevchenko and it seems like the thing that can hurt him the most here is the potential fatigue from his Umag run. I’ll choose to ignore it and just look at the quality edge.
Prediction: Mensik in 2
Sebastian Baez (Argentina) vs Thiago Monteiro (Brazil)
Yesh
Baez loves clay and these Olympics will be a real chance to shine. Let’s see if he takes is.
Prediction: Baez in 2
Ateet
Two players who love to play on clay and have been in good form recently. They have met three times on clay and all those matches have gone to the third set. Baez is fantastic in rallies and covers the court brilliantly. Monteiro is much more aggressive and has a big serve and forehand. Baez will like the slower conditions of Roland Garros better as it will be harder for Monteiro to hit through him. It’s as tough as it can get to predict but I am leaning towards the Brazilian.
Prediction: Monteiro in 3
Damian
Baez had a phenomenal Golden Swing, but he’s not quite as good on the European clay courts. Monteiro has also picked up a few phenomenal wins this season. The Brazilian might not be as consistent, but his ceiling is very high when he believes in his game. This would be far from the biggest upset he has posted this year.
Prediction: Monteiro in 3
Pedro Martinez (Spain) vs Andrea Vavassori (Italy)
Yesh
Martinez has quietly been playing pretty well this year. I’m not sure I can say the same about Vavassori.
Prediction: Martinez in 2
Ateet
Pedro Martinez made the semifinal in Hamburg and has shown multiple times this year that he has a good game on clay. Andrea Vavassori got in as a replacement for Jannik Sinner and will cherish this moment. He hasn’t played many matches this year and is outside the top 200. Martinez should win this given his form.
Prediction: Martinez in 2
Damian
Martinez losing in the Kitzbuhel quarterfinals might actually be a blessing in disguise and help him arrive in Paris in good physical shape. That was probably Vavassori’s chance here as the Italian has that unique clay playstyle, but can’t really compete with opponents at this level if they’re on top of their game (and Martinez has been doing so well this season).
Prediction: Martinez in 2
Alexander Zverev (Germany) vs Jaume Munar (Spain)
Yesh
Zverev is the defending Gold Medalist and just reached the French Open final on these courts seven weeks ago. Assuming he’s not haunted by the loss, he should go far.
Prediction: Zverev in 2
Ateet
Alexander Zverev won the Gold Medal at the last Olympics and would love to repeat the feat. He has been in fantastic form this season, especially on clay. Jaume Munar lost in the first rounds of his last two tournaments on clay but he has beaten Zverev before and would take some confidence from it. Zverev’s knee looked fine in Hamburg so he should not have any problem coming through this match.
Prediction: Zverev in 2
Damian
Zverev was the runner-up at Roland Garros and should be one of the main contenders here as well. His game benefits sometimes in the best-of-five format as it gives him more time to recover from slow starts. But in best-of-three he’ll probably do fine too, maybe he’ll just know he has to be more clinical right away and adjust.
Prediction: Zverev in 2
Other Olympic Predictions:
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- Men’s day two singles including Casper Ruud vs Taro Daniel
- Men’s day two singles including Lorenzo Musetti vs Gael Monfils
- 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 Credit: Susan Mullane – USA TODAY Sports
