{"id":57698,"date":"2023-07-02T11:02:33","date_gmt":"2023-07-02T15:02:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/?p=57698"},"modified":"2023-07-02T10:35:51","modified_gmt":"2023-07-02T14:35:51","slug":"wimbledon-day-1-mens-predictions-ruud-lokoli","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/tennis\/2023\/07\/02\/wimbledon-day-1-mens-predictions-ruud-lokoli\/","title":{"rendered":"Wimbledon Day 1 Men’s Predictions Including Casper Ruud vs Laurent Lokoli"},"content":{"rendered":"

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<\/a>, Lorenzo Musetti vs Juan Pablo Varillas<\/a>, Nick Kyrgios vs David Goffin<\/a>, Hubert Hurkacz vs Albert Ramos-Vinolas<\/a>, Casper Ruud vs Laurent Lokoli<\/a>, Andrey Rublev vs Max Purcell<\/a>, and John Isner vs Jaume Munar<\/a>. Predicting this set of matches are Jack Edward, Damian Kust, and Jakub Bobro. Who do you think will advance?<\/p>\n

Wimbledon Day 1 Men’s Predictions<\/h2>\n

J.J. Wolf vs Enzo Couacaud<\/h4>\n

Jack:<\/em>
\nJ.J. Wolf has struggled with his serve against the best in the world but generally he\u2019s 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.
\nPrediction: Wolf in 4<\/em><\/p>\n

Damian:<\/em>
\nCouacaud has been amazing at qualifying for Slams recently and this is just yet another example. Once he\u2019s actually there, there usually isn\u2019t 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.
\nPrediction: Wolf in 4<\/em><\/p>\n

Jakub:<\/em>
\nIn his first grass season, Wolf took a couple of losses at Queen\u2019s 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.
\nPrediction: Wolf in 5<\/em><\/p>\n

[cta id=4013 type=cta]<\/p>\n

Quentin Halys vs Dan Evans<\/h4>\n

Jack:<\/em>
\nIn February, I picked Quentin Halys as my Wimbledon dark horse. I\u2019m 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<\/a> but I can see Halys going through.
\nPrediction: Halys in 4<\/em><\/p>\n

Damian:<\/em>
\nHalys 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.
\nPrediction: Halys in 5<\/em><\/p>\n

Jakub:<\/em>
\nDan Evans has struggled throughout the year, 9-17 on the season, and he hasn\u2019t managed to find his groove on grass so far, losing to Gabriel Diallo in Surbiton and Sebastian Korda in Queen\u2019s 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\u2019 preparedness and motivation at one of his last few Wimbledons should give him the edge.
\nPrediction: Evans in 4<\/em><\/p>\n

Embed from Getty Images<\/a>