Clash between the French!

One of the two will be in the quarter-finals and it's anything but a surprise, there's a way to go far!

Despite a lack of huge results from both sides during the Asian tour I still saw good performances from both. Bonzi lost against two profiles that he does not like: good servers/aggressive players. Yes he just beat Opelka twice but the American is struggling and does not represent as big a threat as Marozsan or Diallo (Bonzi's last two defeats), the Frenchman plays well and even more so indoors, he keeps the ball low and can also take the net with a forward game that suits him well, I like his profile in these conditions. Same observation for Royer who is LL this time but who lost against a good Bailly in qualifying (the Belgian took out Altmaier behind in addition). Royer seized his chance today by beating Baez, he outpaced him and imposed his rhythm, he did not want to let him play and it worked even if Baez did not play well on his side. The conditions also suit him, he serves cleanly and plays aggressively, it's a real battle of aggression that's coming up, the offensive game will be rewarded and I'm having a bit of trouble deciding as both players are making a great impression on me in this first round. Bonzi is still more experienced and has already played at an exceptional level in some matches this season but Royer is in form and he has what it takes to cause damage tomorrow. A tight and closed match?