French Open 2024, 1st round, Monday, 27.05.2024
Tennis fans have had to wait a long time, but now the time has finally come: the second Grand Slam tournament of the year is about to start! Of course, the German players are also keen to impress on the famous red clay of Roland Garros.
But it is also clear that someone who is ranked 85th in the world seems to have no chance. In his first round, he will face the very opponent who defeated him in the French capital in 2023.
In my Cerundolo Hanfmann tip, I will now take a close look at both players and also tell you why I expect at least one close set and therefore a tiebreak
A single 2nd round? No, Yannick Hanfmann and the French Open are definitely not best friends yet! The 32-year-old is currently ranked in the top 100 in the world and knows that he doesn’t usually play a major role at Grand Slams.
Can that really change in the French capital? After all, he reached the second round here for the first and only time a year ago, beating Thiago Monteiro in five tough sets to open the tournament.
Who knocked him out of the tournament a little later? Francisco Cerundolo, the man he will be facing now! Hanfmann and the Argentinian have met three times so far, and from a German perspective the score is 1:2
2023 at the Rothenbaum in Hamburg, the German triumphed, but: The victory only came about when his opponent retired. So Hanfmann hasn’t really beaten Cerundolo yet, and our German betting providers aren’t exactly optimistic either.
The average odds see Cerundolo ahead with 1.30 to 3.20. The German has been trying to find his strong form on clay in recent weeks. Successful? Moderately
He has won a total of four matches, most recently in Geneva where he managed to beat Andy Murray. Of course, nobody blamed him for retiring in two sets against Novak Djokovic.
Quite interesting: In the last two months, Hanfmann only went over three sets once in the main draw, in all other matches he won or lost outright. Does that automatically mean that only three will definitely be played on Monday?
In any case, this bet would have odds of 2.15 at Oddset. Francisco Cerundolo is definitely the favorite going into the match, but he doesn’t seem to be in absolute top form either.
Most recently in Lyon he was knocked out directly against Hugo Gaston, and in Rome he had no chance at all against Karen Khachanov in round 2. The 25-year-old only impressed in Madrid, where he knocked out Alexander Zverev and only narrowly lost to Taylor Fritz in the quarter-finals
On good days, he can beat the best, but on bad days, embarrassment is never out of the question. A year ago, he showed his best side in Paris, but unfortunately without a real happy ending.
After wins against Jaume Munar, Yannick Hanfmann and Taylor Fritz, Cerundolo faced Holger Rune in the round of 16. The two played an extremely exciting duel, with the Argentinian losing narrowly in five sets in the end.
He had previously been knocked out twice in the first round, so Cerundolo does not have much more experience than his current German opponent for Roland Garros
My Cerundolo Hanfmann tip
What are the chances of advancing to the 2nd round against Francisco Cerundolo? Admittedly, Yannick Hanfmann hasn’t got a monster opponent, but nevertheless one who is likely to be a good deal stronger individually.
While Alexander Zverev has to play Rafael Nadal and is the favorite here, Hanfmann is considered the underdog. However, in view of the Argentine’s recent results, I can imagine that the German will at least keep up and have therefore decided on the following tip:
A tiebreak is possible!
