10th seed Gael Monfils takes on a resurgent Ernests Gulbis of Latvia in the third round of the Australian Open on Saturday, January 25. The match is to be scheduled soon and you can find the Gael Monfils v Ernests Gulbis live streaming options along with its preview, head to head and tips here.
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Gael Monfils v Ernests Gulbis Head to Head
The 33-year-old Frenchman has a perfect record against the 31-year-old Latvian, winning the second round encounter at the French Open in 2013 and the Round of 32 clash in Rotterdam in 2016. Monfils also came out victorious at a Challenger event in Chinese Taipei in 2018.
Monfils Sees Off Karlovic Threat
Gael Monfils didn’t have to do much in the first round on Tuesday as he dispatched Chinese Taipei’s lowly ranked Yen-hsun Lu in straight sets.
Dominating from start to finish, the Frenchman won 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 to kick off his 15th Australian Open campaign. Sweet, but far greater challenges lied ahead! And so, battling past the towering Ivo Karlovic in the second round on Thursday would have given him far more satisfaction and instilled in him the confidence needed to make the push to match his best-ever showing in Melbourne — a quarterfinal finish in 2016.
A two-time slam semifinalist and seven-time major quarterfinalist, Monfils needed two hours and 32 minutes to see off the 6”11’ Croatian, who holds the record of most number of aces in a career.
Fighting back from a set down, the 6”4’ Frenchman safely reached the third round with a 4-6, 7-6 (10-8), 6-4, 7-5 win.
Monfils, who finished with a 1-1 record at the ATP Cup earlier this year, had a very good 2019, which saw him win the title in Rotterdam and reach the semifinals in Sofia, Dubai, Canada and Vienna. He also made five quarterfinal appearances, which included a last eight in Flushing Meadows.
Known for his eye-catching brand of tennis, the Frenchman faces the prospect of a fourth round meeting with No. 5 Dominic Thiem. But to make it that far he will have to go past the in-form Ernests Gulbis.
Gulbis Striving to Stay Relevant
In 2014, he reached the semifinals of the French Open and achieved the highest ever ranking of 10. Now ranked 254 in the world, the 6”3’ Gulbis is trying to stay relevant by reviving a career that has been on a constant decline over the last six years.
The good news for the Latvian is that 2020 has begun on bright note. Coming into the main draw of the Australian Open by winning three tough qualifiers, which included wins over Argentine Federico Coria and Indian Prajnesh Gunneswaran, Gulbis got his biggest win of the year in the first round, knocking out the 20th seed Felix Auger Aliassime in four sets.
Carrying on the momentum, Gulbis got another win under his belt on Thursday as he defeated Slovenian Aljaz Bedene 7-5, 6-3, 6-2 to storm into the third round of the Australian Open for the first time in his career.
Struggling with form and injury, Gulbis had finished 2019 with a woeful 6-17 record at the tour-level. However, five consecutive wins in Melbourne will be a huge confidence-booster for the Latvian who will look to give Monfils a tough fight.
Gael Monfils v Ernests Gulbis Predictions & Tips
Despite Gulbis’ sudden revival, the odds will be stacked in favour of Monfils, who should wrap this up in straight sets.
Tip: Monfils to win in straight sets: 11/10 (Click here to get these odds with Unibet)
You can watch & bet on Gael Monfils v Ernests Gulbis on Saturday, January 25 here. Get the latest tennis predictions and tips here.
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