The Monte-Carlo Masters continues this week as Frances Tiafoe faces Miomir Kecmanovic while Grigor Dimitrov goes up against Nicolas Jarry in the competition’s round of 64 stage. Damien Kayat previews
2025 ATP Tour – ATP 1000
Monte-Carlo Masters
Monte Carlo Country Club
Selected RO64 – 8 April
Frances Tiafoe 7/4 | Miomir Kecmanovic 44/100
This should be an intriguing clash between two players who have yet to produce their best tennis at elite clay-court level. Frances Tiafoe got off to a solid start in his clay-court campaign, reaching his 3rd successive Houston final last week (losing convincingly to Jensen Brooksby in the final).
It was a much-needed result for Tiafoe (he hadn’t won back-to-back matches going into last week’s event). Tiafoe is now 9-7 for the campaign and will be making his Monte-Carlo debut this week.
Tiafoe is a supreme athlete who looks to dictate proceedings from the baseline. He has a power-based game that relies on a big first serve and massive forehand. These surfaces are among the slowest on tour, with players hitting 38% fewer aces here last year.
The slow conditions will present a problem for Tiafoe (who is yet to progress beyond the 3rd round of a Masters 1000 clay-court event). However, he arrives in decent form and will feel quite confident going into this clash.
Serb baseliner Miomir Kecmanovic is currently working a highly respectable 12-8 record for the season. He picked up some excellent results in the opening months of the campaign, reaching the semifinals in Adelaide before claiming his 2nd career title in Delray Beach.
But his form has plummeted since that victory in Delray Beach (he has gone 1-3 in his next three tour-level tournaments). The Serb will be making his first clay-court appearance of the season this week. He actually has a fairly similar clay-court history to his opponent.
He – like Tiafoe – has done fairly well in some minor clay-court events. He won the Austrian Open in 2020 and would finish runner-up in Estoril in 2023 (an event where Tiafoe is a two-time beaten finalist).
But he just hasn’t been able to find his feet in the elite clay-court events, failing to go beyond the 3rd round in a clay-court Masters event (as well as the French Open).
Kecmanovic is a durable baseliner who hits cleanly off both wings. He is a confidence player who can get down on himself when things aren’t going his way.
The Verdict: Kecmanovic to win in three 26/10
Tiafoe has dominated this head-to-head rivalry 4-0 (Kecmanovic is yet to win a set). However, this will be their first-ever clay-court meeting.
I think the clay will even out proceedings, with Tiafoe losing a bit of raw power. Tiafoe may also feel a little leggy after losing in that Houston final.
Grigor Dimitrov 49/20 | Nicolas Jarry 3/10
Grigor Dimitrov will be making his 2025 clay-court debut this week. The veteran Bulgarian has enjoyed a real renaissance these past 18 months or so but has struggled with injury issues this campaign.
Dimitrov was forced to withdraw from three events this year, with groin issues hampering the early portion of his season. But he found a bit of rhythm during the ‘Sunshine Double’, reaching the round of 16 in Indian Wells before a semifinal run in Miami.
Dimitrov is a two-time semifinalist here (2018 and 2022). Dimitrov’s single-handed backhand probably gives him more natural variety than some of his contemporaries.
He loves to slice that backhand to change the momentum of rallies. These courts are slow enough that he can also go around his backhand and use that formidable forehand wing.
29-year-old Chilean Nicolas Jarry is in desperate need of a jolt. He is 1-5 in his last five events and will be looking to end a three-match losing streak here. Jarry – like Dimitrov – has enjoyed some solid success these past few years, rising to a career-high ranking of 16 last year.
Jarry is an avowed clay-court specialist, reaching four clay-court finals in the last two years. He reached the biggest final of his career last year, losing to Alex Zverev in the Rome Masters final. Jarry isn’t your typical clay-court specialist.
He has a big serve and gigantic forehand and looks to play all-out aggressive tennis. His brand of first-strike tennis allows him to conserve more energy than some of his clay-court contemporaries. He will look to hit his forehand down the line, aiming to exploit Dimitrov’s potentially vulnerable backhand wing.
The Verdict: Dimitrov to win in straight sets 17/20
Jarry leads the head-to-head 2-1, winning both of their clay-court matches. I think that Dimitrov is due some clay-court revenge on Jarry.
Jarry hasn’t shone at this event in the past and he looks a shadow of his best self. He never performed well on the South American clay, going 1-3 in three events. Dimitrov is a two-time semifinalist here and arrives in far superior form.
