Gael Monfils vs Marton Fucsovics Prediction – Tennis Picks 10-18-2023

A duel of the veterans as 37-year-old Gael Monfils faces 31-year-old Marton Fucsovics in the first round of the 2023 Stockholm Open. The match will be played on Wednesday, October 18, 2023.

Gael Monfils is making his first pitstop in Stockholm since 2016. A former champion in these parts, Monfils enters this year’s field with a protected ranking. The Frenchman has enjoyed an upturn in fortunes in the second half of the season, winning eight matches since the start of July. Monfils’ final phase of his career has been blighted by injuries in the past 12 months which took him a while to recover before he rejoined the Tour this season. He picked up a fresh wrist injury during his rollercoaster first-round win at Roland Garros in May which ruled him out of Wimbledon. But on his return to hard courts he enjoyed a productive spell, reaching the quarterfinals in Toronto and the round of 16 in Cincinnati.

Marton Fucsovics, meanwhile, arrives in Stockholm on a wave of confidence. The athletically-built Hungarian reached the third round of the Shanghai Masters where he scored a win over Top 20 player Felix Auger-Aliassime. It was the first time he had recorded back-to-back wins on the ATP Tour since Wimbledon, a result that could aid his cause to re-enter the world’s Top 50.

Gael Monfils has beaten Marton Fucsovics in each of their two previous meetings in the head-to-head. But both matches came during Monfils’ final peak in 2019-2020. Monfils has lost his yard of pace, but his rally tolerance still remains top notch as is his ability to conjure up the spectacular with his explosive hitting.  Fucsovics is extremely erratic, but is a dogged competitor who is tough to beat in baseline slugfests. He’s proven that in parts this season, most notably at Indian Wells and Stuttgart. I think the odds are a bit misleading here. Monfils is the favorite with the bookies despite having not played a competitive match since the end of August (excluding the Laver Cup). This might be a good chance for the Hungarian to break his duck.