Monte Carlo Masters (Photo : Getty Images)
Rafael Nadal has found himself one win away from hoisting another Monte Carlo Masters trophy after going through a tough bracket. However, standing on the Spaniard's way is the equally hungry Gael Monfils of France, who is also playing inspired tennis as of late.
Rafael Nadal vs. Gael Monfils 8:30 a.m US ET on Tennis Channel, Sky Sports (UK) / Live Stream on ESPN Watch, Tennis Channel Everywhere, Stream Hunter / Scores & Stats on Pro Tennis Live
On the line: Nadal is setting his sight on his 28th Masters 1000 title, but most of all a championship at Monte Carlo would help him gain more confidence ahead of the French Open championship. Nadal has been through a very tough week, facing and overcoming rising star Dominic Thiem, reigning French Open winner Stan Wawrinka and world's no.2 Andy Murray in a comeback win in Saturday's semifinal.
On the other hand, Monfils has benefited a lot from Novak Djokovic's first round exit and even Roger Federer's quarterfinal loss to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. In the all-Frenchman semis, Monfils played magnificent tennis to down Tsonga in straight sets 6-1, 6-3. He has been a pretty strong contender on the clay-court since he turned pro, but topping Nadal in the finals would instantly make him a dark horse at Roland Garros.
Prediction: Nadal enters the finals as the favorite against Monfils, having defeated the Frenchman 11 out of 13 head to head encounters. It's hard to bet against Nadal at this stage and after showing incredible fighting spirit in that three-set classic with Murray. Still, Monfils is playing arguably the best stretch of his career. As a matter of fact, he punched his way to the finals without dropping a set.
Most of the bets will be on Nadal, but Monfils will give him the toughest challenge in the tournament. It's going to be an entertaining battle between clay-court masters. Nadal is expected to play more behind the baseline, punishing his opponents with his impeccable ground game. Monfils, on the other hand, will try to negate the Spaniard's advantage by forcing him to move towards the net.
Monfils has nothing to lose in this match, so the pressure will be on Nadal to deliver. But in the end, I still see the Mallorcan Bull coming on top in three spectacular sets 6-3, 5-7, 6-4.
