Kopriva to keep his momentum going or Marozsan at home?

This is shaping up to be a big first-round match, not easy but potentially a great opportunity.

Kopriva just put in a strong tournament in Madrid, confirming his interesting 2026 season and his ability to hold his own against top players on clay! His game is smart, his backhand is devilishly effective and he’s got good touch; he’s a clay-courter who’s tough to face. I still think he needs clay that’s at least a bit lively to make up for his lack of power, and Madrid really helped him with that. We’re expecting the same this week, but the conditions change a lot and even though he reached the third round last year, I still need to see more. This first round against Marozsan is going to be a real clash.

A clash because Marozsan often plays his best tennis in Rome; the Hungarian loves this kind of slightly heavy clay where he has the luxury of dictating play the way he likes. We remember his legendary run in 2023 when he exploded onto the scene by notably knocking out Alcaraz here. Last year he pulled off a few more upsets by taking out Fonseca and then Rublev — really, Marozsan in Rome is a serious customer. What bothers him are players more powerful than he is, who take time away from him, except here the court is slow so he usually doesn’t get rushed.

It’s 2/2 between him and Kopriva: the Czech won their first two meetings on clay in three sets, but that was in Futures events; since then it’s been Marozsan who’s come out on top. Let’s say that the very, very recent form leans towards Kopriva, but I feel we’ve got the absolute ideal in terms of conditions and also match-up for Marozsan at this tournament.