Commencing his quest for a second ATP 1000 title in the space of a month, British number one and fifth seed Jack Draper battles Marcos Giron in the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters on Tuesday.
The Indian Wells Masters champion earned a bye to this stage, while his American counterpart got the better of Denis Shapovalov in two sets to earn a date with the ever-improving Briton.
Match preview
© Imago
Hopping as happily as can be across the United States, Draper arrived in Miami with the Indian Wells trophy tucked away safely in his suitcase, having capped off a magnificent week in California by dismantling Holger Rune for his first ATP 1000 crown.
After also taking down good friend Carlos Alcaraz en route to glory, there was seemingly nothing that could stop the dazzling Draper ahead of the Miami Open, or so it seemed before a bizarre Miami Open opener with Jakub Mensik.
The two competitors played in front of a fervent Brazilian crowd, who were waiting to see their beloved Joao Fonseca before being told that the teenage starlet's match had been moved to a different court, triggering a cacophony of boos from the South Americans as they left the stadium.
Draper and Mensik eventually returned to complete a match won 7-6[2] 7-6[3] by the latter - who went on to stun Novak Djokovic in the final - but the British number one may have been grateful for the lengthier recuperation period as he seeks a first-ever third-round appearance at the Monte Carlo Masters.
The world number six made it to the second round on his debut in 2023 before falling at the first hurdle to Hubert Hurkacz last year, but he already has one Monte Carlo success under his belt in 2025; he and Tomas Machac teamed up for a doubles win over Sebastian Korda and Jordan Thompson on Monday.
© Imago
Draper was not the only one to achieve a Masters best at the Indian Wells Open, as home favourite Giron went further than he had ever gone before at an ATP 1000 tournament in front of the home crowd, impressively taking down two seeds along the way.
As well as besting Alexei Popyrin and Nikoloz Basilashvili, Giron shocked Casper Ruud to earn his first-ever top-five win on the ATP Tour, but he was denied a quarter-final place in a three-set loss to Arthur Fils in the fourth round.
Like Draper, though, Giron followed up his best-ever Masters display at Indian Wells with a more forgettable showing in Miami; he lost in three sets to Australia's Thompson despite taking a 1-0 lead, thus being eliminated from the first round for the fourth year running.
Monte Carlo was not a happy haunt for the 31-year-old before this year either, having lost his opening ties in both 2022 and 2024, but the third time was the charm for Giron as he sank Canada's Shapovalov for his maiden win at the competition on Monday.
The world number 45 triumphed 6-3 7-6[5] thanks to his superiority in the key moments; he saved five of the six break points he faced while converting the only two he fashioned on the Shapovalov serve, and such ruthlessness will be required again if he is to break even more new ground on Tuesday.
Tournament so far
Marcos Giron:
First round: vs. Denis Shapovalov 6-3 7-6[5]
Head To Head
Stuttgart Open (2024) - Last 16: Draper wins 6-4 3-6 6-3
Australian Open (2024) - First Round: Draper wins 6-4 3-6 4-6 6-0 6-2
Draper and Giron met for the first and second times during the 2024 season, and the Briton emerged victorious on both occasions, firstly at the Australian Open before repeating the trick in Stuttgart.
During a five-set Melbourne marathon, Draper found himself 2-1 down before pulling off a barnstorming turnaround, and he was also forced to do it the hard way when the pair reunited in Germany.
Nevertheless, the British number one prevailed in three sets to progress to the quarter-finals, before winning his inaugural ATP Tour title at that very same tournament.
We say: Draper to win in two sets
Giron's dogged defending and killer touch on break points against Shapovalov should serve him well on Tuesday, but the American only won 61% of his first-serve points in the first round, an identical tally to his second-serve win percentage.
Expect a refreshed Draper to dominate his more experienced foe on that front, and we can only picture the Indian Wells winner advancing to round three while coincidentally improving to a 3-0 record against Giron.
Ben Knapton
