Paris Day 2 Preview: Djokovic Starts Title Defence

Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour

Novak Djokovic will begin his quest for a record-extending seventh Rolex Paris Masters title Tuesday when he faces Maxime Cressy in the second round in the French capital.

The sixth-seeded Serbian has performed strongly at the final ATP Masters 1000 event of the season throughout his career, lifting the trophy in his previous two appearances in 2019 and 2021. Djokovic will face the American Cressy for the first time on Court Central and heads into the clash high in confidence.

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The former World No. 1 has won his past nine matches, lifting trophies in Tel Aviv and Astana in October. Djokovic, who will compete at the Nitto ATP Finals in November, will be looking to win a record-extending 39th Masters 1000 crown this week, having won his 38th title at this level in Rome in May.

“I feel great in this tournament,” Djokovic said in his pre-tournament press conference. “[I've had] lots of success. [It] always helps to come into the tournament confident and with some good memories, good emotions on the court. [The] past few times that I played here, I won both tournaments... Hopefully I can continue that run.”

Another upset from day 1⃣ in Paris

This one featured Cressy serving 🚀's‼️

Serve Quality tour avg. 7.5/10#ShotQuality is calculated in real-time by analysing each shot's speed, spin, depth, width, and the impact it has on the opponent#TennisInsights | @RolexPMasters https://t.co/tfroCqRtQi pic.twitter.com/zo9ceM8Z8k

— Tennis Insights (@tennis_insights) October 31, 2022

Andrey Rublev will look to boost his Nitto ATP Finals qualification chances when he plays John Isner in the second round in the opening match on Court Central. The 25-year-old is currently seventh in the Pepperstone ATP Live Race To Turin with 3,450 points.

Rublev, who occupies the final qualification spot, is 495 points ahead of eighth-placed American Taylor Fritz, who defeated Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in his opening match on Monday. Rublev’s task will be far from easy, though, with big-serving American Isner leading their ATP Head2Head series 3-0.

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Hubert Hurkacz will be ready to pounce if Rublev slips up, with the Pole taking on French wild card Adrian Mannarino in the first round. Hurkacz, currently on 2,870 points, is ninth in the Race.

The 25-year-old, who holds a 1-1 ATP Head2Head series record against Mannarino, made his debut in Turin last year. He will need a deep run in Paris if he is to return to the prestigious end-of-year event, to be held from 13-20 November.

In other action, third-seeded Norwegian Casper Ruud will take on French wild card Richard Gasquet, while #NextGenATP Dane Holger Rune plays Swiss star Stan Wawrinka. Earlier this season, Ruud reached the final in Miami before he advanced to Grand Slam championship matches at Roland Garros and the US Open.