Vit Kopriva and Luciano Darderi contested the Naples Challenger final on Sunday and were given a Wednesday start by the ATP organizers in Marrakech. Can they keep the momentum going? Meanwhile, No. 4 seed Nuno Borges will begin his campaign against Raphael Collignon. Who do you think will come out on top?
ATP Marrakech Day 3 Predictions
Vit Kopriva vs Borna Gojo
Head-to-head: Kopriva 1-0
Borna Gojo defeated Vit Kopriva this year in Australian Open qualifying, but clay isn’t usually where the Croatian is at his strongest. In peak form he was able to lock in off the ground and find surprising consistency, right now it’s not quite like that as he’s trying to return to where he once was after struggling with injuries. Kopriva won the Challenger in Naples last week and is closing in on a Top 100 debut. He’s got the momentum and he’s the better clay-court player of the two.
Prediction: Kopriva in 3
Luciano Darderi vs Tristan Boyer
Head-to-head: Boyer 1-0
Luciano Darderi returned to the Challenger circuit last week after months of struggling on the main tour and made the final in Naples. Due to rain he had to play two matches on Sunday, but fatigue shouldn’t be too much of a concern here with the Wednesday start. Meanwhile, Tristan Boyer was struggling to replicate his 2024 clay form in the same event, collapsing from a winning position against Federico Arnaboldi. The American can win this, but would need to find his game again very quickly.
Prediction: Darderi in 3
Raphael Collignon vs Nuno Borges
Head-to-head: First meeting
Raphael Collignon broke the Top 100 recently and now we’ll find out how the Belgian’s game stacks up on the main tour. While it was his indoor results that got him there, the strongest tennis we’ve seen from him was actually on clay in 2024. Especially in Luedenscheid, when he dominated Kamil Majchrzak and then took a brilliant final against Botic van de Zandschulp. But his recent performances, including the win over Fabio Fognini in the opening round, weren’t quite as stellar. He’d need to step it up to beat Nuno Borges.
Prediction: Borges in 2
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports
