Scott Ferguson has another three top tennis tips for you as the French Open continues on Tuesday at Roland Garros.
- By Scott Ferguson
Anna Blinkova vs Margarita Gasparyan
A pair of Russians tucked out on Court Nine for our best bet of the day. Anna Blinkova has qualified for the first time at Roland Garros, on the back of solid form at ITF level with a final and semi-final appearance this month. The former junior star has taken a while to adjust to the main tour but seven wins in ten days has her primed for a strong showing here.
Margarita Gasparyan promised an enormous amount when she arrived on the circuit but the 24-year-old has been plagued by injuries which rarely let her get a run of form going. Her latest ailment was a right wrist injury in Rome which forced her retirement in qualifying.
Wrist injuries are nasty, particularly with the spectacular one-hand backhand she possesses - there's a lot of flick involved and any weakness in the ligaments and tendons won't disappear in a hurry.
While ranked higher than Blinkova, her successes have almost all been on hardcourt, particularly indoors where her loopy backhand isn't affected by the breeze. Her Roland Garros record stands at 0-2 in the main draw (qualified once), but hasn't appeared here since 2016.
2pts Anna Blinkova to win at 4/6
Stefano Travaglia v Adrian Mannarino
This back-court contest offers a stark contrast in players - an Italian who has only ever won tournaments (22 at challenger and futures level) on clay against a Frenchman with all his success on hardcourt (19 titles at the same level).
Stefano Travaglia has qualified for the French Open main draw for the first time, after a clay campaign which collected one challenger title (Francavilla) and a semi-final in one of the year's strongest Challenger tournaments at Heilbronn.
Adrian Mannarino has never managed to get the locals' hopes up at Roland Garros. Since first attempting to qualify as an 18-year-old in 2006, he has won just two main draw matches for a 2-10 record, claiming just three sets in all those losses. More recently, he has been on a dismal 9-16 run since reaching the final in Moscow last October, with a 4-6 record on clay over the past two months.
A common thread in their recent form is Belgian veteran Steve Darcis. Mannarino took a set off him before losing 14 of the last 15 games in a limp display a fortnight ago, Travaglia beat him in straight sets to qualify here.
1pt Stefano Travaglia to win 3-0 at 5/2
Mikael Ymer vs Blaz Rola
An interesting battle between two qualifiers to start the day on Court 13. 20-year-old Swede Mikael Ymer is 13-3 during this clay season swing, reaching two finals and only being defeated by the first or second seed in three challenger tournaments. Each of his three qualifying wins lasted three sets and was broken in almost a third of his service games. This is his first main draw at a Grand Slam event.
By contrast, Blaz Rola didn't drop a set in his three qualifying matches, being far more clinical on his route to round one. Just one service game dropped along the way is the right way to enter his first Grand Slam main draw in almost four years.
There's not a huge amount between this pair and I can see this clash being one of those outside court matches that just goes on and on. Sky Bet offer many options beyond the straight win markets, and rather than taking exact set betting, I've found a combination I like - Rola to win and both players to win a set at 12/5.
1pt Blaz Rola to win and Both Players to Win a Set at 12/5
Odds correct as of 2214 on 27/05/19
