Davis Cup – World Group Teams Men
Spain – France: 13.09.2024 16:00 CEST
H2H: 2-2
1st potential matchup:
Carlos Alcaraz – Ugo Humbert
Carlos and Ugo are the best ranked players for Spain and France. This meeting will be played indoors on hard. Since Alcaraz lost against Djokovic in the Olympic Games final, Carlos could not find his best form. He was upset in New York by Van de Zandschulp in the second round. Machac retired against Alcaraz in their opening Davis Cup match. Ugo Humbert was upset by Comesana in the second round of the US Open. Humbert is still a top-20 player, even though his recent results were not brilliant. Ugo won his opening Davis Cup match against Popyrin in straight sets.
We believe that Alcaraz will find his form here in the Davis Cup. Humbert had some solid results this season, but he fumbled under pressure, once he faced the best players. Alcaraz loves to play fast tennis, so we believe that he will be able to dominate in this match.
That being said, we believe that Alcaraz will win the first match for Spain.
2nd potential matchup:
Bautista-Agut – Arthur Fils
Pablo Martinez and Arthur Fils are the second best ranked players for Spain and France. However, we believe that Bautista-Agut will play once again. Roberto Bautista-Agut won his opening match against Lehecka in straight sets. Arthur Fils had his biggest results on clay. However, he underperformed on the fast courts such as this one. Arthur lost his opening match against Kokkinakis in two tiebreaks. Fils had his chances in the second set, but fumbled under pressure.
Bautista-Agut is currently a better hard-court player than Fils. We believe that his flat hitting will prevail in this match. Roberto is also a way more experienced player than Arthur, which is crucial when playing for your country.
That being said, we believe that Agut will win the second match for Spain.
3rd potential matchup:
Carreno Busta/Granollers – Herbert/Roger-Vasselin
We expect Spain and France to play their doubles matches like this. Carreno Busta and Granollers played at the Olympic Games together this year, where they lost against Ebden and Peers in the first round in straight sets. The last time they played at the Davis Cup together was in 2021. Since Mahut has retired, Herbert has not played many doubles matches. He has played only four doubles matches this season, and lost three of them. He has also has different partners each time. Roger-Vasselin had his biggest results this season on clay. His last match before the Davis Cup was at the US Open, where he lost against Boyer/Nava in the first round of the tournament with his partner, Santiago Gonzalez. Herbert and Roger-Vasselin lost their opening Davis Cup match against Ebden and Purcell in three tight sets.
Herbert and Roger-Vasselin showed great tennis against Ebden and Purcell. We believe that they will dominate in this match, and win the first match for France.
Best Bet to Make
Spain has overall a better roster. We believe that their singles matches will prevail in this matchup.
That being said, Spain winning 2-1 is a value bet.
Main Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
