Nine-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal looked in ominous form during the opening round and is strongly favoured to defeat Argentine Facundo Bagnis this evening. Join The Roar for live scores from 8:30pm (AEST).
Nadal was back to his ruthless best on clay in the opening round of the French Open, defeating Australian Sam Groth in straight sets, 6-1, 6-1, 6-1.
Groth’s power serving did little to trouble Nadal on his favourite surface as he romped to victory in convincing fashion.
It has been a tough past 12 months for Nadal as he tries to recapture the aura and form that made him arguably the best player in men’s tennis, particularly on clay.
Even though Novak Djokovic continues to dismantle him, Nadal is slowly but surely finding his groove and will be keen to secure that potential semifinal spot against the world number one to prove that he is indeed back to his best.
First of all however, the Spaniard must first get past the competitive Bagnis who is coming off a rare opening-round win.
Bagnis has struggled to progress past the first round at majors and he will be keen to make the most of a second round showing against the greatest clay-court player of all time.
Sadly for Bagnis, the Argentine doesn’t have the firepower required to trouble Nadal on clay, even if the Spaniard is not the player he once was. If he hopes to secure the upset, Bagnis has to come out swinging and keep things tight for as long as possible.
Prediction
Given Nadal’s great win over Groth, the Spaniard looks set to offer a repeat of the one-sided scoreline produced in his opening round victory.
Nadal in straight sets.
With Rafa Nadal looking to progress to the third round at Roland Garros, be sure to keep up-to-date with all the action with The Roar’s live scores.
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