The other

Engel is the other 18-year-old German! While he has already overperformed in a few local tournaments, he comes in today in poor form...

And the main draw Wild Card is not necessarily a gift in this situation. I’m talking about a situation in which the German hasn’t been winning much this season. A lot less than last season. Maybe there’s some physical issue I don’t know about. And then with his big-hitting game, you really need to be confident. So you’re probably thinking like me that the match-up will be tricky against the very disciplined counterpuncher Kopriva.

I just have a small issue with the Czech. I feel like there’s something wrong with him at the moment. I watched half of his loss to a poor Arnaldi in the Monte Carlo qualifiers. It looks like a bout of fatigue that’s dragging on. So at 1.4, against a local player who may not be in great form but still, and on heavy clay, I’m wary. I have this scenario in my head where his physical level drops as the match goes on. And I’m afraid it might be a bit like what happened against Arnaldi with the Italian crowd!