Qualifying gets underway in Gstaad with overcast skies and rain threatening all day, which could make for some slippery conditions on the clay. We've got three picks from the first round of qualifying to get into, so let's see who's worth backing.
EFG Swiss Open Gstaad Qualifying Predictions
Thiago Moura Monteiro vs Pierre-Hugues Herbert
Head-to-head: Monteiro 1-0 Herbert
Monteiro is ranked a hundred spots above Herbert right now, and at 152 in the world he probably shouldn't even be in qualifying, which tells you how good his chances are here. Herbert was a genuine doubles specialist who reinvented himself as a singles player on the tour, but at 251 and trending in the wrong direction, this feels like a tough ask on clay against someone who's been a consistent presence in the top 150 for years.
Monteiro's one previous win over Herbert gives him the mental edge too and I think he gets through this in three even if Herbert makes it scrappy late on.
Prediction: Monteiro in 3
Marc-Andrea Huesler vs Edas Butvilas
Head-to-head: First meeting
Huesler is a wildcard here in the literal sense, a former top 60 player who's dropped to 311 and clearly working his way back through the ranks. Butvilas at 225 is younger and more consistently active on the tour right now, and that recent match sharpness is probably the deciding factor in a first meeting between two players we don't know a ton about at this level of qualifying.
That said, Butvilas in three feels right.
Prediction: Butvilas in 3
Federico Cina vs Patrick Zahraj
Head-to-head: First meeting
Two hundred ranking spots separate these two, and Zahraj at 401 is going to have a very hard time closing that gap on clay in Gstaad. Cina is solidly ranked, comfortable on this surface, and hard to see this being competitive at all. Cina wins this comfortably.
Prediction: Cina in 2
For full predictions on ATP and WTA matches today, check out Uppset.
Credit Image: © Matthieu Mirville/ZUMA Press Wire