French Open predictions and tennis betting tips: Nadal faces test against Aussie

Free tennis tips, best bets and analysis for day three of the French Open at Roland Garros, Paris, on Tuesday.

Where to watch

ITV4 & Eurosport, from 10am, Tuesday

Best bets

Alexei Popyrin +10.5 games v Rafael Nadal
1pt 3-4 Coral, Ladbrokes

Adrian Mannarino +6.5 games v Aljaz Bedene
1pt 8-11 Betfair, Paddy Power

Lucas Pouille +5.5 games v Pablo Cuevas
1pt 17-20 Coral, Ladbrokes

Anastasija Sevastova to beat Jennifer Brady
1pt Evs bet365, Hills

Preview

Rafael Nadal v Alexei Popyrin

There's every hope that Rafael Nadal can win a 14th French Open singles title in the next couple of weeks, but the great man may have to put in a shift to see off Alexei Popyrin in his Roland Garros curtain-raiser.

Popyrin has been nothing but impressive in the few big-match opportunities he has had in his burgeoning career.

It's good to see that he is competing in more events around the globe this season and he lifted his first main-tour title in Singapore in February.

The Australian is decent on fast courts, but his game should be well suited to clay too.

Nadal turns 35 on Thursday but, taking into account his age, his performance in the clay Grand Slam last year was up there with the best.

However, each match should be taken on its merits and Popyrin has a chance to make a name for himself in this one.

He's capable of taking the Majorcan to the odd tiebreak and so even allowing for the fact Nadal is highly likely to finish strongly against the 21-year-old, the outsider can be chanced with a handicap start of 10.5 games.

It was 6-3 6-3 to Nadal in his first meeting with Popyrin in Madrid recently, but the longer distance could afford the world number 62 an opportunity to get involved more while the title favourite could choose to bide his time more and be happy to win sets via a solitary service break, for example.

Adrian Mannarino v Aljaz Bedene

Aljaz Bedene has been playing well but the Slovenian still looks on the short side for his opener against Adrian Mannarino.

Frenchman Mannarino has lost all six of his outings in the European clay season and that has led oddsmakers to price him up as if there's little hope.

But he's too good to brush off in this battle of 30-somethings and punters should consider an interest on Mannarino with a handicap start of 6.5 games.

Mannarino leads their personal series 2-1, although Bedene won their only previous clay encounter.

Lucas Pouille v Pablo Cuevas

Lucas Pouille has quite rightly been taking his comeback steadily but there's a chance the Frenchman, a top-ten player in 2018, may be slightly underrated for his Roland Garros opener against Pablo Cuevas.

Uruguayan Cuevas is admirably consistent and useful on clay, but at 35 it's likely that his best days are behind him, even on his favourite terrain.

Pouille was a versatile performer on any surface in his pomp and if his fitness is back to the requisite level, he's plenty good enough to make a match of this so back the outsider with a handicap pull of 5.5 games.

Pouille won their only previous meeting, on clay in the Monte Carlo Masters, in three sets, winning the opening set 6-0.

Anastasija Sevastova v Jennifer Brady

It's a first meeting for Jennifer Brady and Anastasija Sevastova, but the clay could favour one more than the other.

Latvian Sevastova has been going along nicely on the slow courts. It took Paula Badosa and Karolina Pliskova to lower her colours in Madrid and Rome respectively and that level of form could see Brady in trouble.

The American's innate power can be telling on faster courts but Brady has yet to fully convince on the slow red terrain.

An easy victory over Jelena Ostapenko in Madrid reads well, but that win aside Brady's clay form has offered little to write home about.

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