Old is Gold! But it will be interesting to see who can outshine the other after battling against each other in the dirt of the Court Philippe Chatrier on Sunday (May 26). Yes, you guessed it right! We’re talking about the blockbuster first-round matchup of the 2024 French Open between two veterans of the tennis world- Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka. It has been almost 19 years since they first played against each other. Several years have passed and now their combined age is 76!

Both of them are currently far away from their prime time. But talking about their dedication to the game, well it’s still the same. Over the past few years, their biggest opponents have been their ages and injuries. Andy Murray suffered a serious ankle injury earlier this year in Miami and he was sidelined for the most of the clay-court swing. But he returned at a challenger event in Bordeaux and participated in the 2024 Geneva Open. However, he failed to make his presence felt on both occasions. Even Stan Wawrinka has been struggling to find his consistency for the past few months. But who has the edge in this nail-biting faceoff?

Andy Murray vs Stan Wawrinka: Preview

Whenever these two superstars step inside the court, fans have witnessed some fireworks in the past. Even this time, the tennis world is expecting the same surrounding the two familiar foes. But Andy Murray will be entering this contest after his recent defeat at the hands of Germany’s Yannick Hanfmann at the R32 of the 2024 Geneva Open. The German defeated the British tennis star by a 7-5,6-2 margin in that match.

Murray hit two aces and committed three double faults in that match. His first-serve win percentage was 61% and on the second-serve, it was also 61%. Murray didn’t get any chance to convert his breakpoints in that match. But if we look at his overall stats from this season, Andy Murray has hit 88 aces and committed 25 double faults. He has won 82% of his service games and 15% of his return games so far this season.

Talking about his opponent from their first-round clash at the Roland Garros, Stan Wawrinka was last seen in action at the Challenger Bordeaux, FR. Over there, he was defeated by Spain’s Pedro Marinez by a 4-6,4-6 margin. Wawrinka hit 8 aces in that match and committed just 2 double faults. He won 66% of his first serve and 43% of his second against the Spaniard. The Swiss tennis star managed to convert one out of his seven breakpoints in that match.

Looking at his overall numbers from this season, Stan Wawrinka has hit 50 aces and committed 23 double faults so far. He has won 73% of his service games and just 20% of his return games. Both the players haven’t yet showcased any remarkable performance this year. But the French Open has always brought out the best version of themselves in the past instances.

Murray vs Wawrinka: Head-to-Head

Both of them had first met each other way back in 2005 at the Davis Cup. Currently, Andy Murray leads the H2H scoreline with a 13-9 margin, but Wawrinka has the edge on clay by 5-1. They first met at the SF of the French Open in 2016. And in that match, it took Murray four sets to clinch the win against Wawrinka. Then again a year later they crossed roads with each other at the same venue and the same stage. But this time it was Wawrinka who had the last laugh. The Swiss took five sets to seal the deal against the Brit in the SF of the 2017 French Open.

So, there is a fair bit of history of going deeper into the matches in their previous meetings. In the 2020 French Open, Wawrinka defeated Murray in the first round of the tournament. But again, even this time it took three sets to decide the winner. Their latest meeting was at the 2023 Challenger Bordeaux, FR where the Swiss took just two sets to defeat Andy Murray. However, the most notable encounter among their recent meetings was at the 2022 Cincinnati Masters. In that match, fans witnessed a three-set thriller when Murray defeated Wawrinka by 7-6,5-7,7-5.

In that match, Murray hit 10 aces and committed 2 double faults. While Stan Wawrinka hit eleven aces and committed 2 double faults as well. The Swiss tennis star had a first-serve win percentage of 71% and on the second-serve, it was just around 65%. Andy Murray won 80% of his first-serve and 69% of his second-serve in that match. The Brit converted three out of his five breakpoints in that match, while Wawrinka converted three out of six. But who’s going to win the Battle of the Giants in the Past in this enticing encounter at the 2024 French Open?

Prediction: Wawrinka to win in three sets

Both of them are three-time Grand Slam champion. But if we take a deeper look into their records from their previous appearances at this clay court Slam, Andy Murray could only manage to reach the finals of the French Open in 2016. Whereas, Stan Wawrinka was the winner of the 2015 French Open. But Murray has a win-loss record of 5-9 this season compared to 2-7 of Stan Wawrinka. Although, the British tennis star looks slightly ahead looking at their current form. But the Swiss tennis star turns to ‘Stanimal’ when it comes to clay. And, fans have witnessed this multiple times in the past.

It’ll be Andy Murray’s defensive baseline game versus Stan Wawrinka’s offensive baseline game. Murray is one of the best counterpunchers in the men’s tour. He has powerful groundstrokes and can swiftly jump from defense to offense. In fact, Murray is one of the top returners in this game. While Stan Wawrinka’s lethal weapon is his one-handed backhand shot. He is known for his fiery serves. But talking about the winner from this clash, Wawrinka’s record on clay and results from previous editions of the French Open will keep him slightly ahead of Murray.