That is a shame in one way, but I also think it was the right decision to take a more cautious approach to the day and we are now down to the Third Round of the tournament.
On Thursday all eight Third Round matches will be played through the day, but the majority of those feel like they should be left alone as data building for further down the line across a long clay court season. There are some close matches and I do think it will be important to plug the information in and hope it proves valuable with big events still to come.
There are some selections from the matches set to be played in Monte Carlo though and I am looking for those to build on the Wednesday performances.
Cristian Garin + 4.5 games v Stefanos Tsitsipas: A relatively comfortable Second Round win for a player Ranked inside the top 5 in the world is always going to have the bookmakers running scared, but I can't help think Stefanos Tsitsipas is being a touch over-rated in this Third Round match.
Before I get into my reasons, I am going to be the first to admit that this is a surface that has long been a favourite for Stefanos Tsitsipas and his numbers over the last few months have been impressive. He was a Semi Finalist at Roland Garros before being undone in the fifth set by Novak Djokovic, and Tsitsipas was always in control of his win over the in-form Aslan Karatsev in the last Round.
Strong serving and a consistent return game has made the Greek player a real danger on the clay courts, although the feeling is that there are at least two players who will get the better of him on this surface. Now I am not suggesting that one of those is Cristian Garin, at least not on a consistent basis, but the Chilean is a specialist on the surface and has the kind of game that will make him competitive even if he is not able to get over the line for the upset.
He won a title in his home tournament played in Santiago, and Cristian Garin has beaten both Felix Auger Aliassime and John Millman in his two matches in Monte Carlo to keep his clay court winning run going. The two wins have been behind very impressive performances from Garin, although he will be the first to admit that this is another step up in level for him.
The serve has not been quite as good as the level that Stefanos Tsitsipas can produce on the clay, but Cristian Garin will be encouraged by slightly stronger return numbers. It suggests we will see a close Third Round match and their last meeting came in Hamburg on the clay courts and needed three sets to determine a winner on the day.
It was Stefanos Tsitsipas who came through that match and I think he is likely going to edge past Cristian Garin again, although this looks a lot of games for the underdog to be given.
In that match in Hamburg, it was Tsitsipas' slightly better serving numbers that proved to be decisive in a very close match and I do think this match is likely to move in a similar pattern. However it was Cristian Garin who earned more break points in the match and he actually had opportunities to break in five games compared with the three in which Stefanos Tsitsipas got into that position and I think the form of the two players is pointing to a close match with very little between them on the scoreboard and in the statistics.
Alexander Zverev - 3.5 games v David Goffin: You don't want to make sweeping judgements about players and how they are going to be performing on a new surface after just a couple of days, but David Goffin will be very pleased with the two wins he has produced here in Monte Carlo. The Belgian had lost both clay court matches played in 2020 and he finished at 6-6 in 2019 so it was important for Goffin to make sure there were no lingering concerns about the clay court season in his own mind at the very least.
Wins over Marin Cilic and Marco Cecchinato are solid results with both decent clay courters, but David Goffin is going to have to be stronger when facing Alexander Zverev. The numbers produced by Goffin have been impressive, but again it is hard to make a big judgement on a couple of matches and especially when you think the general play on the clay has been at a considerable level below where Goffin has been this week.
Facing Alexander Zverev will be a challenge for Goffin who is the underdog in this Third Round match. I can't really argue with that considering the solid performances Zverev has had on the clay courts throughout his career, although I do think the German was not playing anywhere near his best in beating Lorenzo Sonego in the Second Round.
That performance has to be a concern especially after the early exit at the Miami Masters, but I do think the focus is likely going to be that much greater knowing how good David Goffin can be on his day. And as much as Alexander Zverev will see his room for improvement, he was seeing the ball pretty big on the return of serve and has to feel he can at least put his opponent under some real pressure on that side of the match.
There hasn't been much between the players in the past with both holding two wins over the other, although Zverev's wins have both come on the clay courts. The last of those did come three years ago so I am not sure it is very relevant, but in those two previous clay court matches it was the Alexander Zverev return which had been the more productive of the two players and I think that is likely to be the case again in this Third Round match.
The spread will not be an easy one to overcome, but Zverev should be better with a match under his belt here in Monte Carlo and I think he is the better clay court player. If he just improves the way he backs up his serve compared with the Second Round, I think the German player will have enough to get the better of David Goffin despite how well the latter has played so far here this week.
MY PICKS: Cristian Garin + 4.5 Games @ 1.72 Bet365 (2 Units)
Alexander Zverev - 3.5 Games @ 2.00 Bet Fred (2 Units)
Monte Carlo Masters Update: 5-6, - 3.28 Units (22 Units Staked, - 14.91% Yield)
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