Fritz vs Draper, Khachanov vs Mpetshi Perricard

Jack Draper, Karen Khachanov and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard will look to stay red-hot when they take to the track in Paris on Wednesday. Khachanov and Mpetshi Perricard go head-to-head, while Draper faces Taylor Fritz.

Jack Draper vs. (5) Taylor Fritz

Fritz did not need to win a single match at the Rolex Paris Masters to officially earn his place in the Nitto ATP Finals. The sixth-ranked American secured his place when a host of other contenders such as Andrey Rublev, Casper Ruud, Hubert Hurkacz and Frances Tiafoe lost on Tuesday. It’s a well-deserved qualification for Fritz, who is 49-20 this season with two titles and a runner-up finish at the US Open.

First up for the fifth seed on Wednesday is a fourth meeting with Draper. Fritz has taken a 2-1 lead in the head-to-head series with a pair of wins this season; in a third set tiebreaker at the ATP 250 in Munich and 6-7(3), 6-3, 6-2 at the Paris Olympics. An indoor hard court will give Draper a much better chance, as it did last week in Vienna against all opponents. The 22-year-old Briton rolled to his second title, taking him to a career-high ranking of No.15 in the world. With both players in fantastic form, this could be the best match of the entire second round. A slight edge from a physical point of view goes to a well-rested Fritz.

Choose: Fritz in 3

(WC) Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard vs. Karen Khachanov

Khachanov and Mpetshi Perricard are on fire coming down the home stretch of this 2024 campaign. Mpetshi Perricard was particularly impressive last week in Basel, lifting the 500-point trophy after not dropping serve once in five rounds. The 21-year-old Frenchman faced just three break points in the entire event, all in the quarter-finals against Denis Shapovalov. Mpetshi Perricard was up to similar tricks on Tuesday in Paris, dispatching Frances Tiafoe 6-7(5), 7-6(4), 6-3 as he hit 28 aces and fought off both of Tiafoe’s break point chances. His serve is arguably as hot as Freddie Freeman’s bat in the World Series.

A 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(6) victory over Christopher O’Connell in the opening round improved Khachanov’s record to 9-1 in his last 10 matches. This stretch features a title in Almaty followed by a runner-up finish in Vienna (lost to Draper). That’s a lot of tennis in a short amount of time for the 21st-ranked Russian, and an absolute battle against O’Connell on Tuesday won’t help. Expect Mpetshi Perricard to continue his winning streak in front of the home crowd.

Pick: Mpetshi Perricard in 2nd