French Open Day 1 Picks 2013 (May 26th)

The start of the second Grand Slam of the season is a Sunday and these are my picks from the opening day.

I have also made a couple of outright picks from the Men's draw which can be found here


Gilles Simon - 7.5 games v Lleyton Hewitt: This is a bad match up for Lleyton Hewitt, a player that hasn't enjoyed his time on the clay courts in recent seasons, and I think he could be sent home quickly and get set for the grass court season.

Hewitt hasn't had a lot of matches in recent weeks, while Gilles Simon is consistent enough to wait for the mistakes the Australian makes. While it does look like a large amount of games to get through, I do think the Frenchman, urged on by the home crowd, will come through with at least one 62 set that should set him on the way.

I do think Simon has enough to just bide his time in this one as Hewitt begins to struggle for consistency, especially on the slower clay courts, and I do think Simon comes through 64, 62, 64.


Roger Federer -8.5 Games v Pablo Carreno Busta: Roger Federer cannot complain at all with his draw at the French Open and I think this is a good opener for him, although Pablo Carreno Busta has shown potential and will be very comfortable on the clay courts.

The young Spaniard will cause some problems, but playing Federer in a Grand Slam has to be overawing and that is why I believe the second seed here will take one of the sets fairly comfortably and set himself on the way to covering this spread.

I know Federer has had a couple of really surprising defeats this season and he also seems to fluctuate in levels of play far more often than we are used to seeing, but I don't think he will drop enough to let Carreno Busta get a real hold of this match and I like Federer to win 61, 64, 63.


Marcel Granollers - 3.5 games v Feliciano Lopez: Marcel Granollers is certainly the more comfortable of these two Spanish players on the clay courts and has a lot more matches under his belt on the surface this season. Feliciano Lopez has only played two matches on the clay and he lost both of those and I am expecting Granollers to come through in this one.

I know Granollers is capable of playing very erratically, as shown in his destruction at the hands of Benoit Paire, but I do think Lopez is a player that is much happier on the faster surfaces and that mentality may hold him back.

It wouldn't be a surprise if this one goes to four sets, but I do think Granollers will come through with enough room to cover this spread.


MY PICKS: Gilles Simon - 7.5 Games @ 2.10 Pinnacle (2 Units)
Roger Federer - 8.5 Games @ 1.95 Pinnacle (2 Units)
Marcel Granollers - 3.5 Games @ 1.80 Sky Bet (2 Units)