It’s time to grab the best seat in the house as the ‘La Monf‘ is all set to begin in just a few hours from now at the iconic Philippe-Chatrier! Gael Monfils is playing his 62nd Grand Slam of his career in Paris this year. Moreover, he has recently also clinched his 122nd career win at a major, that’s indeed the most by any Frenchman on the Tour. He will now face Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti in the second round of the 2024 French Open. The 22-year-old Musetti is one of the brightest prospects in Italian tennis, but can he throw a formidable challenge in front of an experienced campaigner, like Monfils?

Gael Monfils recently has had an impressive start to his season this year. He made it to the SF in the Qatar Open and had also reached the R16 of the Indian Wells Masters. But on the clay courts, he has looked a bit shaky as of now. However, he recently ended his three-match losing streak by defeating Brazil’s Thiago Seyboth Wild in the first-round match of Roland Garros.

Gael Monfils vs Lorenzo Musetti: Preview

Monfils defeated Wild by 6-2,3-6,6-3,6-4 in his previous match. He fired nine aces in that match and committed a total of five double faults against the Brazilian. His first-serve win percentage was 79% and his second-serve win percentage was just around 52%. Gael Monfils converted six of his fifteen breakpoints against Thiago Seyboth Wild.

If we shift our focus to his numbers from this season, ‘La Monf’ has hit 188 aces and committed 84 double faults so far. He has won 81% of his service games and 20% of his return games this year. Playing in front of the home crowd gives an added advantage to any player. Can Monfils capitalize on that and come up with even better numbers in his next match?

Well, Lorenzo Musetti surely has the potential to disrupt his equations in this intriguing contest. He has made quite a few R16 appearances this year but his best performances came at the two Challenger events this year where he reached the finals. In his previous match at the 2024 French Open, Musetti defeated Columbia’s Daniel Elahi Galán by 6-3,6-3,7-5. He hit four aces and committed just two double faults in the entire match.

His first-serve win percentage was 87% and on the second-serve, it was 59%. The Italian successfully converted five of his twelve breakpoints in that match. Lorenzo Musetti has hit 59 aces and committed a total of 28 aces so far this season. He has won 77% of his service games and 19% of his return games. It will be interesting to see how well he manages to cope with the pressure of handling the French crowd in the match against the French tennis star, Gael Monfils.

Monfils vs Musetti: Head-to-Head

Both of them have previously met each other on one occasion. It was at the R32 match at the 2021 Vienna Open. In that match, Gael Monfils defeated Lorenzo Musetti by 7-6,6-4. Monfils hit nine aces and didn’t commit a single double fault in the entire match. Whereas, Musetti hit one ace and committed one double fault against the Frenchman. The Italian’s first-serve win percentage was 70% and on the second-serve, it was recorded to be around 45%. For Gael Monfils, it was 92% and 70% respectively. ‘La Monf’ converted one out of his five breakpoints in that match, while ‘Muse’ was 0/0 on the breakpoints.

Prediction: Monfils to win in five sets

Lorenzo Musetti has to fight two opponents in a single match! One will be the former world number 6 and the other will be the Parisian crowd. Gael Monfils has previously reached the SF of the French Open in 2008. On the other hand, Musetti’s best record in this tournament was reaching the fourth round in the 2021 and 2023 editions. Monfils currently has a win-loss record of 12-12 this season while it’s just 9-14 for the Italian.

Although Monfils is 37 years old, he has this unique ability to turn up on the courts with a bundle of energy. His athleticism and his incredible court coverage are two of his biggest weapons. He can swiftly move from defense to offense and surprise his opponents at any point in the match. Gael Monfils also has a strong and accurate serving ability along with powerful groundstrokes.

Lorenzo Musetti on the other hand, is a natural clay court player. His long backswing on both forehand and backhand gives him an added advantage on this surface. Musetti’s biggest weapon is his one-handed backhand, and he loves to play a strong baseline game. But with the support of the home crowd, the Frenchman looks quite likely to come out of this nail-biting contest with flying colors.