An all-Spanish affair between Rafael Nadal and Nicolas Almagro is set for Thursday at the French Open. Another Spaniard, Pablo Carreno Busta, is in second-round action against Jack Sock.
Nicolas Almagro vs. (6) Rafael Nadal
Nadal and Almagro will be squaring off for the 14th time in their careers and for the second time during this current clay-court swing when they collide in round two of the French Open on Thursday. The head-to-head series stands at a dominant 12-1 in favor of Nadal, who is 9-1 at the expense of his fellow Spaniard on red dirt. They most recently faced each other last month in Barcelona, where Nadal turned in one of his best performances of the season en route to a commanding 6-3, 6-1 victory. Almagro’s lone win came last fall at the same Barcelona event, where he prevailed 2-6, 7-6(5), 6-4.
Despite his recent lopsided loss and Nadal’s 67-1 lifetime record at Roland Garros, Almagro should not consider this a lost cause. After all, Nadal has an alarming five losses on clay (nine overall) in 2015. Almagro, meanwhile, is coming back nicely from a foot injury with 13 match wins on the year following a 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(6) defeat of Alexandr Dolgopolov on Tuesday. Nadal kicked off his bid for a 10th title by cruising past French wild card Quentin Halys 6-3, 6-3, 6-4. Almagro will put up a fight, but he would rather contest this matchup on a fast hard court. Conditions are by all accounts slow and heavy in Paris and the underdog in all likelihood will once again be undone by Nadal’s heavy topspin forehand directed at his one-handed backhand.
Pick: Nadal in 3 losing 12 games or fewer
Jack Sock vs. Pablo Carreno Busta
To say Sock is making up for lost time would be a considerable understatement. The 22-year-old American missed the first two months of this season because of a hip injury and did not play until Indian Wells. He promptly reached the fourth round there, the third round in Miami, and captured a title on the clay courts of Houston. Sock, who is up to No. 37 in the world, opened in Paris on Tuesday with the biggest upset of the first round–a 7-6(7), 6-2, 6-3 drubbing of 10th-seeded Grigor Dimirov.
Up next for Sock on Thursday is Carreno Busta, whom he has never faced. The 61st-ranked Spaniard also kicked off his tournament in impressive fashion as he hammered Victor Estrella Burgos 6-3, 6-1, 6-0. Carreno Busta is just 8-13 on the season, but he appears to have emerged from a major slump. The 23-year-old reached the Estoril semifinals earlier this month to pick up some momentum prior to Roland Garros. Although the surface slightly favors Carreno Busta, Sock is underrated on clay and will have too much game for his opponent.
Pick: Sock in 4
