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Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic easily punched their way to the second round of the French Open on Monday. But the tests for the top-2 favorites in this tournament won't get any easier as they take on seasoned veterans in their respective second-round assignments on Thursday.
Rafael Nadal vs. Facundo Bagnis at 7:00 a.m US ET: Live Stream on Tennis Channel Everywhere and Sports Stream
What's at stake: the Spaniard is targeting a historic 200th Grand Slam victory of his career in his second round match against Facundo Bagnis, who scored a straight sets win over Frenchman Kenny de Schepper 6-0, 6-2, 7-6. Nadal, who's coming off a solid clay-court run with victory at Monte Carlo and Barcelona, opened his French Open campaign with a resounding 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 win over Sam Groth of Australia.
Nadal has never been eliminated earlier than the fourth round at Roland Garros. Thus, it only means Bagnis had to come up with a perfect game to upset the 9-time French Open champion on the red dirt of Paris - a task that proves insurmountable even for other tourney favorites.
Prediction: It's hard to bet against Nadal at this stage of the tourney. There's a million reasons why he's the King of Clay. A second-round exit is very unlikely unless Bagnis came through with a Fernando Verdasco-liked performance on Thursday. Moreover, based on his resounding win in the first round, Nadal won't overlook his next opponent. He will be laser focused on this match and it's bad news for the upset-minded Argentine. Nadal in straight sets 6-2, 6-1, 6-2.
Novak Djokovic vs Steve Darcis at 8:00 a.m US ET: Live Stream on Tennis Channel Everywhere and Sports Stream
What's at stake: On paper, Djokovic is the overwhelming favorite entering his match against Steve Darcis of Belgium. Djokovic is fresh from straight sets annihilation of Taiwan's Yen Hsun-Lu 6-4, 6-1, 6-1 and undefeated in two past encounters with the Belgian.
However, Darcis is no way a push over. The 32-year old Belgian made a name for himself three years ago when he stunned Rafael Nadal in the first round of the Wimbledon Open, making him the first player to defeat the Spaniard in a major tournament ( a feat followed by Verdasco this year). No doubt Darcis has to play the game of his life to beat Djokovic on Thursday. Then again, he's not new to this situation. He has been here before and that alone makes him more dangerous for Djokovic.
Prediction: Djokovic's match with Darcis will be a lot tighter than anybody would expect. Darcis will give the world's no.1 netter all sorts of problems in this match, but I don't see the Serb losing in this match. While Nadal is eager to reclaim his throne, Djokovic is far hungrier. He enters in this tourney with one goal on his mind - winning his first Roland Garros and completing a career Grand Slam. Djokovic winning in four sets 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.
Coverage for Day 5 of the French Open 2016 will start at 5:00 a.m US ET through 3:00 p.m on Tennis Channel and NBC Sports. Upcoming matches, scores, and results can be followed on French Open matches.
