Wow, what a match in the first round, the recent Rome Masters winner against the Roland Garros legend holding 14 titles from the French Grand Slam. We have Alexander Zverev taking on Rafael Nadal in the first round of the 2024 French Open on Sunday. Check out our view on the main draw here.
Let’s have a look at these players ahead of the game and we’ll also give our predictions of the outcome.
- Current odds
- Zverev 1.25 | -400
- Nadal 4.00 | +300
Last time around for Nadal
Following a shaky year, Nadal is set to play at the French Open for the last time in his career. Most Rafa-fans would maybe have liked to see an easier clash in the first round but here we are.
The 37-year-old legend is one of the greatest tennis players ever and we can only hope for a decent good-bye from the Roland Garros. He has fallen way out of the top 100 in the ATP rankings and his recent tournaments in Europe showed some glimpses of the old Rafa at times but that’s about it. His best performance so far was reaching the 4th round of the Madrid Masters.
The question is, can Rafa step up his game as we’ve seen him do at the French Open so many times?
Some experts think we’ll see an explosive match between these two stars that are in different parts of their career.
Zverev in great form
Alexander Zverev reached the semi-finals here in France last year and since then he always looked like he belong in the absolute top level of the rankings. His confidence looks sky-high after the Rome title. The German will feel he has a real chance for the Roland Garros title this season with some of the top stars like Sinner and Alcaraz struggling with injuries and Djokovic still not up to shape.
H2H
Rafa lead their h2h stats 7-3 at the moment and their most recent meeting was actually the 2022 semifinal at the French Open where Zverev was forced to retire with an injured ankle.
Predictions
As much as this is an exciting first round match for us fans, it’s quite the bad draw for Rafa. He would need to build some momentum here in France but he will have to be at his very best from the start to have a chance here. And even if so, can he manage 4 or 5 sets, thinking of his fitness? Should be interesting as we know what he can achieve.
While it might not be the ideal draw for Zverev either, knowing how he is usually a slow starter in these tournaments, I think his current form will be the difference.
Prediction: Zverev to advance to the next round.
