Preview: Australian Open: Gael Monfils vs. Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard - prediction, form, head-to-head

In an all-French affair, 2 players riding a batch of momentum quadrate disconnected successful the opening circular of the Australian Open arsenic Gael Monfils takes connected Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard for the archetypal clip successful his career.

Last Saturday, Monfils won the ASB Classic last implicit Zizou Bergs 6-3 6-4, portion Mpetshi Perricard made the semi-finals of the Brisbane Open earlier this year, wherever helium was beaten by Reilly Opelka 3-6 6-7 (4-7).

Match preview

© Imago

An offseason of remainder seems to person done Monfils immoderate good, with the 38-year-old becoming the oldest men's subordinate to triumph an ATP rubric since 1977 past weekend.

It was the 13th triumph of his vocation arsenic helium won the last lucifer successful 1 hr and 37 minutes for his archetypal singles rubric since the 2023 Stockholm Open erstwhile helium defeated Pavel Kotov successful consecutive sets.

His champion Grand Slam showing this decennary came astatine the 2022 Aussie Open erstwhile helium made it to the quarter-finals earlier falling to Matteo Berrettini.

Monfils has made it beyond the opening circular successful his past 10 singles Grand Slam contests since helium was upset by Finland's Emil Ruusuvuori successful a five-set thriller successful 2021.

So acold this year, helium seems to person regained his beardown work form, hitting 22 aces successful 2025 portion lone registering 4 treble faults.

He has claimed lone 51% of 2nd work instrumentality points but has made up for that by winning 71% of his archetypal work points truthful acold this year.

© Imago

While Monfils needed clip disconnected to get into form, his first-round hostile was successful coagulated signifier down the agelong of the 2024 campaign.

Mpetshi Perricard began to highest past fall, claiming the ATP 500 crown successful Basel with a straight-sets triumph implicit Ben Shelton.

The 21-year-old volition beryllium competing successful the Australian Open singles gully for lone the 2nd time, having been eliminated successful the qualification signifier a twelvemonth ago.

This week, helium has a accidental to marque it beyond the opening circular of a Grand Slam singles lawsuit for lone the 2nd clip ever, having made the 4th circular astatine Wimbledon successful 2022.

So far, successful 2025, the Frenchman has won 83% of his archetypal service points connected the hard tribunal and astir each of his work games (98%), registering 85 aces on the way.

In 2025, helium has faced six interruption points connected hard tribunal surfaces and saved 83% of his interruption points portion winning a full of 74% of his work points.

We say: Monfils to triumph successful 4 sets

Monfils appears to beryllium injury-free and rejuvenated aft a hard 2024, and his acquisition and fantabulous betterment velocity could propel him into the adjacent circular of this tournament.

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