Andy Murray faces Tomas Machac and Emil Ruusuvouri takes on Lucas van Assche in the ATP Open 13. Damien Kayat previews.
2024 ATP Tour
ATP 250
Open 13
Palais des sports de Marseille, Marseille
Selected Round of 32 Matches- 6th February
Andy Murray 7/4 | Tomas Machac 43/100
You have to admire the gumption of 36-year-old Scot Andy Murray. The former World No.1 could have easily floated off into blissful retirement. But he still loves the game and wants to eek as much out of his shattered body as he still can. I’m just not sure he still has it in him.
He has lost all three of his tour-level matches this season. He unfortunately drew eventual champion Grigor Dimitrov at the Brisbane International. But he probably should have done better against clay-court specialist Etcheverry at the Aussie Open.
He then surrendered a one-set lead to Benoite Paire in Montpellier last week. Murray’s game was always built on durability and the ability to counterpunch and quickly turn defence into attack. Nowadays, Murray looks like he is merely hanging around in points, without the capability to switch the tempo like he was famed for.
You really have to wonder what another early defeat could do to the Scot’s psychology? Murray can draw some confidence from the fact that he won this title when he last competed here in 2008.
23-year-old Czech Tomas Machac is yet another tricky first-round opponent for Murray to deal with. The Czech player enjoyed a pretty solid 2023 campaign, winning two Challenger titles to help propel him into the top 65 in the world for the first time in his career.
He also made two ATP quarterfinals (one of which came on indoor hardcourts in Stockholm). But it’s his recent performance in Melbourne that will give him real encouragement this week. He reached the third round of a slam for the first time in his career, including a blistering second-round victory over hardcourt dynamo Frances Tiafoe.
That was a terrific all-court performance powered by his resilient backhand. He also showed excellent touch at the net (unsurprising considering his semi-final run in the double section of this year’s Aussie Open). He pushed Karen Khachanov to four sets in the third round, going toe-to-toe with the resolute Russian in yet another solid outing.
Verdict: Machac to win in straight sets at 11/10
This will be the first career meeting between these two. I think that Murray could once again struggle this week. Machac showed in Melbourne that he has the court craft to duke it out with some of the biggest hitters in the men’s game. Murray is really a husk of his former self and this could provide yet another nail for that retirement coffin.
Emil Ruusuvouri 47/100 | Lucas van Assche 16/10
This is set up to be a cracking first-round clash between two in-form players. 24-year-old Finn Emil Ruusvouri is really your prototypical modern baseliner. He takes the ball early and likes to dictate the tempo on his forehand wing.
He has proven to be a doughty competitor, reaching the second round of all four Grand Slam tournaments. And he started out this year with a bang, reaching a second career ATP final at the Hong Kong Open. He almost pulled off one of the shocks of the Aussie Open, surrendering a two-set lead against eventual finalist Daniil Medvedev in the second round.
The Finn is a really solid player who will exploit any weakness- mental or physical- that his opponent brings to the court. Next up his faces one of the rising starts of men’s tennis: Lucas van Assche.
19-year-old Lucas van Assche is at the vanguard of a flood of young French talent currently operating on the men’s tour. A junior French Open champion in 2021, van Assche enjoyed a really solid campaign last year. He won two Challenger titles, forcing his way into the NextGen Finals.
And- like Ruusuvouri- he has started 2024 in fine style, bowing out in the third round of the Aussie Open. His second-round, five-set win against Musetti really highlighted his growing maturity. Van Assche has a powerful- if erratic- serve that is capable of winning him plenty of cheap points.
He takes the ball early but still lacks some of the power necessary to consistently mix it up with the big boys. This season will be a crucial campaign in the development of the young Frenchman.
Verdict: Ruusuvouri to win in three sets at 11/4
This will be the first career meeting between these two- Van Assche will obviously enjoy a huge swell of fanatical home support. But you shouldn’t let that obscure the basic facts here.
Ruusuvouri is a two-time ATP hardcourt finalist and he knows how to wear his opponents down. That being said, the young Frenchman could nick a set off the tide of home support. But I think the Finn will simply outlast the Frenchman with his more developed physicality.
