Frances Tiafoe meets Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in Tuesday's Paris Masters first-round match, aiming to halt the Frenchman's momentum.
The 21-year-old may be one of the wild cards at the final Masters of 2024, but he comes into his home tournament after an outstanding week in Basel that culminated in his maiden ATP 500 crown.
Match preview
Tiafoe's indifferent post-US Open form continued in Vienna when the American player exited in round two at the hands of Matteo Berrettini.
Batteries recharged after that titanic battle in Austria, Big Foe aims for a deep run in Paris, keen to regain much-needed confidence after his dip since the final Major of 2024.
Tiafoe was defeated in his first match in Tokyo and exited in his second matches in Shanghai (Roman Safiullin), Almaty (Aleksandar Vukic) and Vienna (Berrettini), thus underlining his slump.
While the 26-year-old's slide since reaching the US Open semis is alarming, the American aspires to snap out of the mini rut for a deep run in Paris this year.
The three-time ATP Tour champion is 7-7 in Masters 1000 events in 2024 and aims to notch an eighth victory against an opponent riding high.
Mpetshi Perricard had lost eight of nine matches heading into the ATP 500 event in Basel, but the 21-year-old Frenchman left Switzerland 5-0 en route to the biggest title of his embryonic career.
Having fired 22 aces against James Duckworth, 22 against the former champion Felix Auger-Aliassime, 27 against Denis Shapovalov, and 17 in the semi-final win over Holger Rune, the young French player reeled off 22 against Ben Shelton and got the only break of serve to clinch the title 6-4, 7-6(4).
A serving masterclass all week in Basel saw no opponent break the Mpetshi Perricard serve, and sustaining such high levels could be the difference between stunning Tiafoe and exiting early in his home Masters 1000 event.
For a player who started the year outside the top 200, moving into the top 50 and now 31st in the rankings underlines his continued ascent.
It remains to be seen if the 21-year-old finally wins a Masters 1000 match at the third time of asking, but clinching the title in Switzerland stands him in good stead ahead of Tuesday's match with the higher-ranked American player.
Head To Head
Both men will meet for the first time in Paris, with Tiafoe keen to improve his 7-7 record at ATP 1000 events.
Although Mpetshi Perricard is 0-2 in 1000 events, the Basel champion aims to snap that losing run on Tuesday.
We say: Mpetshi Perricard to win in three sets
If Mpetshi Perricard serves anywhere near his Basel best, Tiafoe would struggle to stay competitive.
Although the American has the confidence and ability to challenge his younger opponent's strong serve, his recent dip in form could make it an uphill battle, potentially leading to an early exit.
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