Tsonga, coming after an injury, played his first tournament of the season two weeks ago in Miami – losing 4-6 6-7 to Monfils in the second round, after edging a three setter over Smyczek. The frenchman is obviously a little rusty after his lack of activity this year, but even so he managed to get a second win under his belt this week, beating lucky loser Struff in straight sets in his Monte Carlo opener – a good performance, but nothing to shout about.
This season Goffin wasn`t quite able to keep up the amazing form from 2014, at least not yet. However, that`s not to say Goffin is playing poorly – his tennis is at a decent level and the Balgian is on the back of his best tournament of the year, a Round 16 showing at Miami – though he was demolished by Nishikori 1-6 2-6. David bounced back with a blowout win of his own here in the Monte Carlo first round, a 6-1 6-4 win over Gombos. Obviously the opposition was poor, but Goffin kept his unforced errors under control, which is always a good sign for him.
Tsonga leads the Head 2 Head 2-1, but Goffin won the previous meeting, a tough three setter last year in Metz. The Head 2 Head analysis is not saying much here, especially since non of the direct meetings were played on the red dirt.
Goffin can be inconsistent at times and this year he had serious issues against top players, but the talented Belgian should edge this. He knows exactly what he needs to do against a rusty Tsonga and that is to play a good baseline game, lengthen the points and find angles – coincidentally, exactly what Goffin does best. Jo Wilfried still needs time to regain an optimal level of tennis and his movement is not up to par, so I expect the speedy Goffin to move him around and position himself for easy winner. And Tsonga will make a fair share as unforced errors to gift Goffin easy points, as the last matches showed. Ant it if it goes to a deciding set, Goffin will have the edge physically – especially when we consider that Tsonga played yesterday and David had an extra day of rest.
Based on the analysis above, my tip is easy to anticipated: I will pick Goffin to win. Odds are dropping on this bet. Prediction: Jo Wilfried Tsonga – David Goffin 4-6 7-6 1-6.
Live streaming for JW Tsonga vs. David Goffin available for players at Bet365.com.
Pick: Goffin
Odds: 1.95
