Tommy Paul vs Geoffrey Blancaneaux Prediction & Betting Tips - Aix en Provence, France

Prediction published on 04/05/2023, 03:33  by Kennedy Kechula in Tennis Predictions

Top seed Tommy Paul is making his first appearance at the Aix en Provence Challenger in six years and will begin his tournament with a second-round clash against Geoffrey Blancaneaux (alternate) on Thursday. Paul last played in this tournament in 2017 and was eliminated in the first round then as a special exempt player. He returns this time as the top seed and is highly tipped to win it all. The American started the season in fine form but has since regressed and will hope playing in the Challenger circuit will help him rediscover his form. Paul started the season by making it all the way to the semifinals at the Australian Open, the first time he has advanced that far in a Grand Slam. This allowed him to move into the world’s top 20 for the first time at number 19. He would use this momentum to power his way to the final in Acapulco, the second ATP tour final of his career but he has since been on a backward slide and arrives at the Open du Pays d'Aix having lost three straight matches with the last two coming in his switch to clay for the season.

Geoffrey Blancaneaux has played more regularly in Aix en Provence with his last appearance coming in 2021. He has however never managed to go past this round, in fact, this is the first time that he has made the second round in what is his third appearance. He will hope that it is third time’s a charm for him as he plots to take control of his season. The Frenchman currently has a losing record with 13 losses and 11 wins from the 24 matches he has played. His latest victory came in the first round where he defeated the qualifier Ivan Gakhov in straight sets of 6-3, 6-2. Blancaneaux is currently ranked 180th in the live ranking after dropping six places but can move up to 170th if he does manage to secure the victory over Paul. The two players have never met before and the winner here will advance to the quarterfinals where a clash with either eighth-seed Tomas Etcheverry or the unseeded Jurij Rodionov awaits.