French Open Odds: Day 2 Picks
By RICKY DIMON
(4) ANDY MURRAY (-205) VS. RICHARD GASQUET (+155)
This is a brutal first-round draw for Murray. Gasquet is a former Top 10 player who won an ATP title in Nice on Saturday and the Frenchman will have the crowd squarely in his corner on Monday. Gasquet is also 2-1 lifetime against Murray, with his lone loss coming in a five-set Wimbledon thriller.
Gasquet, however, cannot be happy about playing just two days after triumphing in Nice. French Open tournament organizers denied his request for one more day of rest, so he might not be fully recovered. Murray, although least comfortable on clay, is coming off a quarterfinal finish in Madrid and he made it to the Roland Garros quarters in 2009.
Pick: Murray in 5 sets
(24) THOMAZ BELLUCCI (-225) VS. MICHAEL LLODRA (+165)
Llodra probably enjoys playing at Roland Garros because the French fans are always behind him, but the clay-court surface simply is not conducive to his game. The Frenchman is one of very few serve-and-volley players left in the business.
Bellucci, by contrast, is the essence of a clay-court specialist. The 22-year-old Brazilian has appeared in three career ATP finals (winning two titles), and all three have come on the dirt. Bellucci should be feeling good having recently made it to the Barcelona quarterfinals.
Pick: Bellucci in 4 sets.
(21) TOMMY ROBREDO (-225) VS. VIKTOR TROICKI (+165)
Robredo suffered a minor knee injury last month in Barcelona and has not played since, but he might not have to be 100 percent to beat Troicki. They have faced each other twice, with Robredo prevailing with ease each time, including 6-4, 6-3 just last month on the clay courts of Monte-Carlo.
While Robredo—a four-time French Open quarterfinalist—is always at his best on the slow stuff, Troicki prefers hard courts. The Serb owns a mere 1-2 lifetime record at Roland Garros.
Pick: Robredo in 4 sets.
(27) ALONA BONDARENKO (-165) VS. VERA DUSHEVINA (+125)
Bondarenko is easy on the eyes, and her game is not too shabby, either. The Ukrainian registers at No. 31 in the world and she has advanced at least two rounds in three of her last four tournaments.
Dushevina made recent headlines by taking Serena Williams to three tiebreakers in Madrid, but she is not as experienced as Bondarenko at the Grand Slam level. The Russian has now been dealt three straight bad first-round draws in Paris (previously vs. Elena Dementieva and Caroline Wozniacki). She could not pull off an upset in either of those two attempts and while this one is not quite as difficult on paper, it is still a tough task.
Pick: Bondarenko in 3 sets.