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The unveiling of the Roland Garros men’s singles draw on Thursday served up a potential quarter-final meeting between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, with Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev joining them in a loaded top half. But before we look too far ahead at the possibilities, ATPTour.com takes a look at five of the best matchups that are already locked in.
[4] Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) vs. Lorenzo Musetti (ITA)
Stefanos Tsitsipas beat #NextGenATP Italian Lorenzo Musetti twice in 2021, on the hard courts of Acapulco and the clay of Lyon — both at the semi-final stage. The Greek enters Roland Garros with a 31-10 record and one title this season, his 31 match wins leading the ATP Tour. Tsitsipas has posted a 14-1 record on the European clay, kickstarted by his Monte Carlo title defense in April.
Musetti, who reached a career-high of No. 51 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings in early May, enters Paris after a successul run to the Madrid last 16 as a qualifier. The 20-year-old defeated Top-50 opponents Ilya Ivashka and Sebastian Korda before retiring with a leg injury against Alexander Zverev in the Spanish capital. Musetti missed his the Internazionali BNL d’Italia and was handed a tough first-round draw as he looks to bounce back in Paris.
[14] Denis Shapovalov (CAN) vs. Holger Rune (DEN)
The first meeting between these two men comes on one of the game’s biggest stages, with both players entering Paris in strong form.
While Denis Shapovalov has the superior 2022 record at 16-9 to Holger Rune’s 9-9, the Dane has won an individual title this season while his opponent has only been as far as the semi-finals in Dubai. The 19-year-old Rune earned his first ATP Tour title in Munich, helping him move up to third place in the Pepperstone ATP Race To Milan.
Shapovalov opened the season by helping Team Canada to the ATP Cup title. He reached the quarter-finals at the Australian Open, Doha and Rome in addition to his Dubai run.
[8] Casper Ruud (NOR) vs. [WC] Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was done no favours ahead of his swan song at Roland Garros. The 37-year-old Frenchman faces one of the Tour’s most feared clay-court stars in the opening round as he prepares for the final tournament of his professional career.
Casper Ruud leads the ATP Tour with 28 clay-court wins over the past 52 weeks, according to Infosys ATP Performance Zone stats, not including his progress to the semi-finals week in Geneva. He rebounded from a 4-4 start to the European clay swing to reach the last four in consecutive weeks in Rome and Geneva.
Tsonga enters Paris with a 2-5 tour-level record in 2022, with both of his victories coming in France (Montpellier, Marseille). His meeting with Ruud will be the pair’s first ATP Head2Head matchup.
[16] Pablo Carreno Busta vs. [WC] Gilles Simon (FRA)
Pablo Carreno Busta and Giles Simon will meet for the seventh time in the Roland Garros opening round, but for the first time since 2019. The Spaniard leads the series 4-2, including a 2-1 mark on clay. Four of their previous meetings have come at the ATP Masters 1000 level, in addition to a second-round meeting at the 2018 Australian Open, won by Carreno Busta via retirement.
Simon is playing in his final Roland Garros, having announced his plans to retire following the 2021 season. With a 498-390 career record (1-4 this season), the Frenchman is two wins away from a milestone 500th career victory.
Carreno Busta could also reach a match-wins landmark in Paris — he enters with a 246-195 career record (16-11 on the year) and could notch win No. 250 by reaching the quarter-finals.
[19] Alex de Minaur (AUS) vs. Hugo Gaston (FRA)
A first-time matchup of young guns pits the 23-year-old Alex de Minaur against the 21-year-old Hugo Gaston. The Aussie has enjoyed a strong start to 2022, his 19-10 record (prior to Lyon) including runs to the Australian Open last 16 and the Barcelona semi-finals, where he held a match point against eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz.
De Minaur has not lost in the first round in five clay events on the European swing, and could enter Paris on the heels of his first ATP Tour title of the season. He will face Alex Molcan in the Lyon semi-finals on Friday.
Gaston reached the Roland Garros last 16 in 2020, beating Stan Wawrinka and taking Dominic Thiem to five sets in his main-draw debut at his home Slam. The Frenchman’s best result of 2022 came in Miami, where he notched two victories — including a straight-sets win over John Isner — to reach the last 32 at the ATP Masters 1000 event.
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