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Tsonga getting better by the day

Granollers recorded his only second win since Zagreb. Matosevic was a tougher nut to crack than the result might suggest but Granollers won all the crucial points. Tsonga was very angry after losing to Cilic because he almost won the second set. On the other hand, he served very well and is clearly very enthusiastic, which means Granollers is in for a tough challenge today

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There were a few players who chose Monte Carlo as a stage for their comeback, among them Tsonga, who recorded two wins without losing a single service game despite seeming out of tune at moments. Aggressiveness and good approach on the court are his strong suit, even though when he's not very confident. He knew that his game needs to improve still and he was right, as his match with Cilic proved. Tsonga was powerless for about a set and a half, while missing out on too many opportunities in the second half of the match. Return failed him in tie-break as well.

- I'm disappointed but happy with my progress. I have been getting better since Miami. It was tough against Cilic because he served so well and he is also very fast for a player that tall. I had problems with his before as well - Tsonga said and added:

- I have been practicing with Monfils lately and we play a lot of long rallies, which helped me feel better on clay court. I hope I will keep on doing better and I hope for a good game in Barcelona. 

He is now set to face Granollers, who has only two wins since Zagreb. He ended the 6-game losing run in Monte Carlo and surprised with a convincing win over Mannarino, who has been having the best season in his carrier. Granted, the Frenchman was never top level on clay but he ended up winning only 3 games. Granollers went on to get only two games against Robredo to prove he's not actually getting back in shape. He took advantage of the draw here.

Matosevic has been struggling with an arm injury lately and has lost confidence and his ranking plummeted during that struggle. A lot of games were close (the first three ones went on for almost 20 minutes) but Matosevic failed to use his opportunities. The almost 40% of points won against Granollers' serve were enough for only 2 breaks. Granollers did much better in that respect, having 11 break points and converting 6 of them. The total of 17 games went on for 90 minutes. 

There won't be as many long rallies against Tsonga. Even though the Frenchman is vulnerable, Granollers will need to do his absolute best of the season in order to win. Except for the few close wins at Zagreb Indoors, everything else was not good for him this year.