Serena Williams and Rafael Nadal will chase history starting today in Paris.
For Serena, this is her 10th attempt at securing what has become an elusive 24th Major title. For Nadal, it’s his second bid to tie Roger Federer for most men’s Major singles titles. Also on Monday, the sport’s newest Major champion, Dominic Thiem, plays his first match since achieving that feat. In a tough opening round draw, he faces another US Open champion, Marin Cilic. They are joined today by fellow Slam champs Angelique Kerber, Garbine Muguruza, Petra Kvitova, and Svetlana Kuznetsova. Monday will be a busy day around the grounds of Roland Garros.
Dominic Thiem (3) vs. Marin Cilic
Just like yesterday, the men’s lineup is headlined by a meeting between two Major winners: the 2014 and 2020 US Open champions. In this unusual 2020, Thiem is back on court for another Major just 15 days after his US Open triumph. But Thiem should be fresh, coming off a rarity in his career: taking two weeks off. And this is Dominic’s best Slam: he’s reached the semifinals or better the last four years, and was the runner-up to Nadal the last two years. By contrast, this has been the worst Major for Cilic, though he has reached the quarterfinals twice since 2017. But it’s been a rough two seasons for Marin, who has not advanced beyond the fourth round of a Slam since 2018. Over the last two years, Cilic is just 7-5 on this surface. And he’s 0-3 lifetime against Thiem, which includes a four-set loss just a few weeks ago at the US Open. There’s no evidence to support a different outcome today.
Svetlana Kuznetsova (28) vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
This should be quite the battle between two Russian veterans. Kuznetsova was the champion here in 2009, though she hasn’t gone beyond the fourth round since 2014. Pavlyuchenkova has reached six Major quarterfinals in her career, including here in 2011, though she’s never advanced farther. Anastasia has actually been the better player in recent years. She reached two finals last fall, and the quarters of the Australian Open in January. Kuznetsova is just 1-7 at Majors in the last three years, yet she’s shown glimpses of her best tennis outside the Slams. She was the finalist in Cincinnati a year ago, and reached the semifinals of Doha earlier this year. Kuznetsova leads their head-to-head 6-3, which includes their only meeting on clay, four years ago in Paris. The clay certainly favors the former champion, who is the favorite in what could be a grueling encounter between two great fighters.
Gael Monfils (8) vs. Alexander Bublik
Well this is guaranteed to be entertaining. Both these unorthodox players prioritize having fun on court, sometimes at the expense of logic. Expect to see underhand serves, tweeners, and plenty of wry smiles. Monfils has reached the quarters or better here four times, though not since 2014. And while he won back-to-back hard court titles in February, the Frenchman is 0-2 on clay this month. 23-year-old Bublik is only 4-8 in his career at the Majors, but did reach the quarters of Hamburg last week as a lucky loser. And he owns victories this year over top 20 players Denis Shapovalov and Felix Auger-Aliassime. However, Monfils has not lost in the first round of his home Slam since his debut 15 years ago. I don’t see that changing today, as there’s nothing Bublik does significantly better than Monfils. Their first career meeting should further reveal that.
Marketa Vondrousova (15) vs. Iga Swiatek
21-year-old Vondrousova was a surprise finalist here last June. She stormed through six rounds without dropping a set, taking out four seeded players along the way. Marketa would only play three more matches in 2019, as wrist surgery interrupted her upward trajectory. She started this season just 3-7, but regained some form two weeks ago in Rome, where she walloped Elina Svitolina 6-3, 6-0 on her way to the semifinals. Her opponent today is another of the WTA’s most promising stars: a 19-year-old from Poland who has already reached the round of 16 at two Majors. That includes last year at this event. Like Vondrousova, Swiatek had surgery following last year’s US Open, due to a foot injury. But Iga did not lose any momentum, advancing to the fourth round of the Australian Open in her first tournament back. This will be the first of what will hopefully be many matches between two engaging players with plenty of variety in their games. Vondrousova will surely feel pressure to back up her result here from a year ago, though that may be a bit alleviated with the knowledge she will not immediately lose her ranking points due to the current rankings freeze. But Swiatek is a tough first round draw, and it would not be surprising for the teenager to defeat the 2019 runner-up.
Madison Keys (12) vs. Shuai Zhang
The last time these two played, Keys left the court in tears. After winning the first set in the fourth round of the 2016 Australian Open, a left leg injury hampered the American, who toughed out the match but lost in three. This marked the first Major quarterfinal for Zhang, who had never won a match at a Slam prior to the event. Shuai was ranked outside the top 100 at the time, and had recently considered retirement due to her struggles on tour. Zhang would go on to reach another Major quarterfinal last year Wimbledon, though she’s only 4-8 lifetime at Roland Garros. But Keys has become one of the WTA’s more consistent performers at Grand Slam events. She hasn’t lost an opening round match since 2014, and has advanced to the quarters or better the last two years in Paris. Zhang owns a 3-2 record against Keys at all levels, though Madison claimed their only clay court meeting seven years ago in Rome. Madison retired from the US Open a few weeks ago with a neck issue, and hasn’t played since. Zhang meanwhile earned three clay court wins last week in Strasbourg. But if Keys is healthy, she has the tools to dictate the outcome, and overcome the painful memories of their last encounter.
Other Notable Matches on Day 2:
Three-time champion Serena Williams (6) vs. Kristie Ahn. These Americans played just a few weeks ago in this same round of the US Open, with Serena prevailing in straight sets.
12-time champion Rafael Nadal (2) vs. Egor Gerasimov, a 27-year-old from Belarus. While Gerasimov is 3-0 in the first round of his last three Majors, Nadal’s Roland Garros record of 93-2 is the real story.
2016 champion Garbine Muguruza (11) vs. Tamara Zidansek, a 22-year-old Slovenian who reached the final of a clay court event last year in Nuremberg.
A champion in Strasbourg just two days ago, Eliva Svitolina (3) vs. Varvara Grecheva, a 20-year-old Russian who came back from 6-1, 5-1 down to upset Kiki Mladenovic at the US Open.
Daniil Medvedev (4) vs. Marton Fucsovics. Medvedev leads their head-to-head 3-0, though Daniil is 0-3 in his career at the French Open.
Monday’s full schedule is here.
