World no. 6 Milos Raonic should enter the match locked-in for some redemption. He will be fresh off an early exit at the Lyon Open, where he cruised in the opening rounds before getting upset by Tomas Berdych in the semifinals.
The Canadian is 22-10 in on the clay in the last three years and 11-5 all-time at the French Open. Additionally, he reached the FO’s quarterfinals in 2014 and its fourth round last year. Although his records aren’t as impressive as the other elites, he has the upper hand against the much lower-ranked Steve Darcis.
The 2017 season has seen its fair share of Raonic’s abilities, as seen in the pair of finals appearances he has advanced to – Istanbul Open and Delray Beach Open. In there, he earned great wins versus the likes of Bernard Tomic, Kyle Edmund, and Viktor Troicki.
The 38th-ranked Darcis is coming in as a big underdog (as he should). He’s below the .500 winning percentage on the clay, 4-8 all-time in the French Open, and has also lost 16 of his 18 total matches against top 10 players.
However, it’s still reasonable to consider him one of the more dangerous mid-tier guys in the sport today, especially for Raonic, who has the tendency to suddenly get knocked off. This will also their first meeting, so the way they could matchup is still a question mark.
Darcis just won the BNP Paribas Primrose Bordeaux tournament last week, as he ran past five opponents for the championship. With that win, he now has six titles on a clay surface and 10 finals appearances on such court since 2013.
Writer’s Prediction
Raonic (-1,200) wins, but not before Darcis gives him a good challenge.
