{"id":36773,"date":"2021-05-31T12:25:09","date_gmt":"2021-05-31T16:25:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/?p=36773"},"modified":"2021-05-31T16:03:54","modified_gmt":"2021-05-31T20:03:54","slug":"french-open-day-3-predictions-nadal-vs-popyrin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2021\/05\/31\/french-open-day-3-predictions-nadal-vs-popyrin\/","title":{"rendered":"French Open Day 3 Predictions Including Rafael Nadal vs Alexei Popyrin"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Day 3 at the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/category\/french-open\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">French Open<\/a> sees the king of clay Rafael Nadal start yet another journey in Paris that he hopes will finish with the champion&#8217;s trophy. We have predictions for all of the day 3 matches as the first round completes, in four other articles. One features <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2021\/05\/31\/french-open-day-3-predictions-djokovic-vs-sandgren\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Novak Djokovic vs Tennys Sandgren<\/a>, another headlines <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2021\/05\/31\/french-open-day-3-predictions-berrettini-vs-daniel\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Matteo Berrettini vs Taro Daniel<\/a>, the third highlights <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2021\/05\/31\/french-open-day-3-predictions-monfils-vs-ramos-vinolas\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Gael Monfils vs Albert Ramos-Vinolas<\/a>, and the fourth features <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2021\/05\/31\/french-open-day-3-predictions-gaston-vs-gasquet\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Hugo Gaston vs Richard Gasquet<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>Rafael Nadal vs Alexei Popyrin<\/h3>\n<div class=\"getty embed image\" style=\"background-color: #fff; display: inline-block; font-family: Roboto,sans-serif; color: #a7a7a7; font-size: 11px; width: 100%; max-width: 594px;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 0; margin: 0; text-align: left;\"><a style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1316632923\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"overflow: hidden; position: relative; height: 0; padding: 67.676765% 0 0 0; width: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"display: inline-block; position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; margin: 0;\" src=\"\/\/embed.gettyimages.com\/embed\/1316632923?et=izxa0J7SSHFSDh5aiwaAcQ&amp;tld=com&amp;sig=htONL08T97uNWearPFMdruulXRl0yqIfmzBlOIYiQls=&amp;caption=true&amp;ver=1\" width=\"594\" height=\"402\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Eric Han: I do not see the 13-time Roland Garros champion being dumped out of the first round in his backyard here in Paris. A good opportunity for Popyrin, but he has arguably the biggest task in tennis in front of him- beating Nadal at the French Open. <strong>Nadal in 3<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Yesh Ginsburg: Don&#8217;t be shocked if Nadal loses a set here. Popyrin is the type of player that has troubled him in the past, especially early in a Major. Don&#8217;t expect a real threat to lose the match, though. <strong>Nadal in 4<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Damian Kust: This match could be somewhat close only if Popyrin\u2019s absolutely redlining and plays the best tennis of his career. While he did improve a lot on clay of late, staying this aggressive against a guy who\u2019s won 100 of his 102 matches here and is likely the best defender in the history of the game, is simply an unbelievably difficult challenge. <strong>Nadal in 3<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3>Yasutaka Uchiyama vs Marco Cecchinato<\/h3>\n<div class=\"getty embed image\" style=\"background-color: #fff; display: inline-block; font-family: Roboto,sans-serif; color: #a7a7a7; font-size: 11px; width: 100%; max-width: 594px;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 0; margin: 0; text-align: left;\"><a style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1232691443\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"overflow: hidden; position: relative; height: 0; padding: 66.66667% 0 0 0; width: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"display: inline-block; position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; margin: 0;\" src=\"\/\/embed.gettyimages.com\/embed\/1232691443?et=XXhlOzmqREpNG9q8Uoff8Q&amp;tld=com&amp;sig=jKo_MHKI8GCbcH9c9Nn3Uw1xfdIJXvpS7VE7uNxs8vg=&amp;caption=true&amp;ver=1\" width=\"594\" height=\"396\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Eric: Cecchinato, a specialist in clay, should be able to get through this match without any problems. The 28-year-old Italian reached the final in a Challenger last week so will be brimming with confidence with how his game is at the moment. <strong>Cecchinato in 3<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Yesh: Cecchinato has been searching for his once-impressive clay form for a few years now, but he seems to have found it in Parma last week. <strong>Cecchinato in 3<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Damian: Cecchinato should be coming in with a lot of confidence after finishing runner-up in Parma. The former Roland Garros semifinalist got a fantastic draw with the last direct acceptance, who\u2019s also in terrible form and doesn\u2019t perform well on the dirt. <strong>Cecchinato in 3<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3>Elias Ymer vs Roberto Carballes Baena<\/h3>\n<div class=\"getty embed image\" style=\"background-color: #fff; display: inline-block; font-family: Roboto,sans-serif; color: #a7a7a7; font-size: 11px; width: 100%; max-width: 594px;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 0; margin: 0; text-align: left;\"><a style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1300964939\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"overflow: hidden; position: relative; height: 0; padding: 66.66667% 0 0 0; width: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"display: inline-block; position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; margin: 0;\" src=\"\/\/embed.gettyimages.com\/embed\/1300964939?et=yvM0y9AcQG1rClpMBiQEaQ&amp;tld=com&amp;sig=CnILyXDg1G2BYBLMVARAAT1Zra4gu5N09fGF6mnUAxA=&amp;caption=true&amp;ver=1\" width=\"594\" height=\"396\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Eric: Like Cecchinato, Carballes Baena, is a clay-court specialist. It will be a good match against the talented Swede, but the Spaniard should be able to advance without too many problems here. <strong>Carballes Baena in 3<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Yesh: I love watching Ymer play (both brothers, to be honest). They&#8217;re so fun on the tennis court with a pretty unique style. But on clay? It will be tough to stick with the Spaniard. <strong>Carballes Baena in 4<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Damian: The two have met four times on the Challenger circuit and both scored two wins in various clay-court events. This could be a real slugfest with neither player happy to generate pace. Carballes Baena seems to be in slightly better form. <strong>Carballes Baena in 5<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3>Facundo Bagnis vs Benjamin Bonzi<\/h3>\n<div class=\"getty embed image\" style=\"background-color: #fff; display: inline-block; font-family: Roboto,sans-serif; color: #a7a7a7; font-size: 11px; width: 100%; max-width: 594px;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 0; margin: 0; text-align: left;\"><a style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/989874262\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"overflow: hidden; position: relative; height: 0; padding: 66.66667% 0 0 0; width: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"display: inline-block; position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; margin: 0;\" src=\"\/\/embed.gettyimages.com\/embed\/989874262?et=LHzWQ3ikTjNARu9vu912Xg&amp;tld=com&amp;sig=CCBHaDpWWl25xNCHtqS_ql_mOCz3EThh-UYNt-HrM1w=&amp;caption=true&amp;ver=1\" width=\"594\" height=\"396\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Eric: Bagnis has had consistent results on the red dirt this year. The 31-year-old Argentine reached the final of the Chile Open in March and Oeiras last week. It will be a good result if he is able to get through the next round. <strong>Bagnis in 3<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Yesh: Benjamin Bonzi is a fun player who has made runs at the French Open before. Bagnis is solid enough that the Frenchman won&#8217;t have one this time. <strong>Bagnis in 4<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Damian: Bonzi has been one of the brightest stars of the 2021 ATP Challenger Tour, while Bagnis is also having a great season, highlighted by a final appearance in Santiago. Besides a title run at Ostrava Challenger, most of Bonzi\u2019s clay-court starts this year were very mediocre though. The lefty Argentinian should have a tiny edge on this surface. <strong>Bagnis in 4\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Main Photo:<\/p>\n<div class=\"getty embed image\" style=\"background-color: #fff; display: inline-block; font-family: Roboto,sans-serif; color: #a7a7a7; font-size: 11px; width: 100%; max-width: 594px;\">\n<div style=\"padding: 0; margin: 0; text-align: left;\"><a style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1232725511\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"overflow: hidden; position: relative; height: 0; padding: 66.66667% 0 0 0; width: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" style=\"display: inline-block; position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; margin: 0;\" src=\"\/\/embed.gettyimages.com\/embed\/1232725511?et=6lt3GwojREFxj9medlg-nQ&amp;tld=com&amp;sig=M2_e9nIfWxMu6PlLqBmwfiU6W5bezPhMI9LXyKzHcO8=&amp;caption=true&amp;ver=1\" width=\"594\" height=\"396\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Day 3 at the French Open sees the king of clay Rafael Nadal start yet another journey in Paris that he hopes will finish with the champion&#8217;s trophy. We have predictions for all of the day 3 matches as the first round completes, in four other articles. One features Novak Djokovic vs Tennys Sandgren, another [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1442,"featured_media":36776,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[69],"tags":[3970,15508,10889,15823,2399,15984,3636,15506,2942,155,15456,135,15412,4730,15501,896,2941,2373,2369,8676,15983],"class_list":["post-36773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-predictions","tag-alexei-popyrin","tag-alexei-popyrin-predictions","tag-benjamin-bonzi","tag-benjamin-bonzi-predictions","tag-elias-ymer","tag-elias-ymer-predictions","tag-facundo-bagnis","tag-facundo-bagnis-predictions","tag-french-open-predictions","tag-marco-cecchinato","tag-marco-cecchinato-predictions","tag-rafael-nadal","tag-rafael-nadal-predictions","tag-roberto-carballes-baena","tag-roberto-carballes-baena-predictions","tag-roland-garros","tag-roland-garros-predictions","tag-tennis-picks","tag-tennis-predictions","tag-yasutaka-uchiyama","tag-yasutaka-uchiyama-predictions"],"modified_by":"Yesh Ginsburg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36773","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1442"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36773"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36773\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}