Consistency!!

That's all we expect from Machac; the level is very high when he strings together several tournaments/matches at 100%.

A win over Altmaier then Cerundolo before taking a set off Sinner, that’s a good week in Monte Carlo for Machac. The Czech lost early in Marrakech to the eventual winner, so you can put that into perspective, and I hope he keeps riding this wave. His level on clay is excellent also because he has enough power to hit winners on slow courts while staying extremely mobile/hard to rush; he can definitely compete for titles in smaller tournaments. The first round of a tournament is always tricky with him, but this time he really makes you want to be on his side, I think. A bad match or his physical condition giving out would be surprising; all the indicators look green.

For this first round he’ll be up against Baez. The Argentine is once again showing that he’s really not at the same level on European clay as he is on South American clay; his matches haven’t been good and he doesn’t really make you want to back him at the moment. I remember their match in Monte Carlo last year where Machac came out on top; it was scrappy and pretty true to who these two players are. A lot of movement on both sides, fluctuating mentality, sets that can be very one-sided… I feel like the key is mostly to sense WHO is in form to know who’s going to win; the match-up itself seems balanced to me.

As I said, I’m rather on Team Machac given the momentum. I’ve liked his matches and not Baez’s in the last tournaments; it’s a thin edge, but the Czech will have my preference.