Roland Garros: Casper Ruud vs Tommy Paul preview, head-to-head & prediction | French Open 2020

Match details

Fixture: (28) Casper Ruud vs Tommy Paul

Date: 30 September 2020

Tournament: Roland Garros 2020

Round: Second Round (Round of 64)

Venue: Paris, France

Category: Grand Slam

Surface: Red clay

Prize money: Approx. €38,000,000

Match timing: Approx. 3 pm CEST, 6.30 pm IST

Live telecast: USA - NBC Sport / Tennis Channel | India - Star Sports / Disney+ Hotstar VIP

Also check out: The Complete French Open 2020 Schedule

Casper Ruud vs Tommy Paul preview

21-year-old Casper Ruud comes into this year's French Open after reaching back-to-back semifinals at the Italian Open and the German Open. Ruud has now climbed up to No. 25 in the world and has won 20 matches this season - the fourth most by any player on the tour.

Already the highest-ranked ATP player ever from Norway, Ruud was in great form prior to the shutdown too. He won the Buenos Aires title in February, and also reached the final in Santiago.

50 hours after losing the Hamburg semifinal, Casper Ruud beats Yuichi Sugita 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 in 94 minutes to reach the 2nd round at #RG20.

Ruud now 16-3 on clay in 2020.
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) September 28, 2020

Ruud's opponent is another rising player, 23-year-old Tommy Paul, who is ranked No. 58 in the world - one rung below his personal best. While Americans are generally not very fond of playing on clay, Paul is an exception to this, having grown up on the clay courts of North Carolina.

Paul is a former French Open junior champion, which shows his comfort level on the surface. He had qualified for the Mexican Open in February and also the Hamburg Open last week, reaching the quarterfinals and the round of 16 respectively.

Breakthrough moment for young American Tommy Paul, who loses a two-set lead against No. 18 seed Grigor Dimitrov and then takes the fifth in a tiebreaker. Wins it 6-4, 7-6 (6), 3-6, 6-7 (3), 7-6 (10-3). Into the third round of the Australian Open after four hours and 19 minutes
— Christopher Clarey (@christophclarey) January 22, 2020

Casper Ruud vs Tommy Paul head-to-head

Tommy Paul during his first round win over James Duckworth at the 2020 French Open.

Tommy Paul leads the head-to-head against Casper Ruud by a margin of 1-0. Paul won the Round of 64 match at the Citi Open in 2017, when Ruud retired down 0-3 in the third set.

Casper Ruud vs Tommy Paul prediction

Casper Ruud during his semi-final match against Novak Djokovic at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia

Casper Ruud is a strong claycourt player, who loves playing long rallies and counterpunching from the baseline. The Norwegian has been training at the Rafa Nadal Academy and has impressed many with his attitude and work ethic.

Tommy Paul also has incredible footwork and court coverage, and can play a little more aggressively with his forehand. Both players are in good form and won their opening match in straight sets, but Ruud comes in with a lot more confidence given his recent big wins.

All things considered, the Norwegian should be expected to come through this match unscathed.

Prediction: Casper Ruud to win in four sets.

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