Reilly Opelka is back! The 26-year-old American tennis star underwent surgery on his hip and wrist, which kept him out of action for a prolonged period. However, recently, he made a victorious comeback at the Infosys Hall of Fame Open after almost a gap of two years. He defeated France’s Constant Lestienne in the first round and will now face another Frenchman. Can he defeat Adrian Mannarino in the R16 and make it to the QF in Newport?

Mannarino’s season has been full of ups and downs so far. His best result was reaching the SF of the 2024 Dallas Open. Now, it will be interesting to see if he can really make another deep run in a tournament this year.

Reilly Opelka vs Adrian Mannarino: Preview

Opelka defeated Lestienne by 6-1, 2-6, 7-6(2) in his previous match. Although the margin looks pretty close to the scoreline, if we look at the stats, then we’d get an idea of his brilliance in this match. Reilly Opelka hit 16 aces and committed just 6 double faults. He won 90% of his first serve and 56% of his second serve but could only convert two out of his ten breakpoints.

His opponent, Adrian Mannarino, will enter this match after his first-round exit from Wimbledon earlier this month. The 36-year-old Mannarino was defeated by his compatriot Gael Monfils by 4-6, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6. He could manage to hit only a single ace in the entire match and committed 5 double faults. Mannarino won 65% of his first serve and 67% of his second serve against Monfils. He converted 2 out of his 3 breakpoints. So, serves don’t seem to be his strongest weapon!

Adrian Mannarino has hit a total of 111 aces this season and has committed 54 double faults. He has won 72% of his service games and just 15% of his return games. Have these two players met each other before though?

Opelka vs Mannarino: Head-to-Head

Opelka and Mannarino have played against each other three times in their careers so far. Currently, the Michigan native leads the H2H with a clear-cut 3-0 margin! Their first meeting was at the 2019 New York Open, where Opelka opened his account in this rivalry by defeating the Frenchman in a three-set thriller in the R32. Next up, was at the 2022 Dallas Open where the American saw a 6-3, 6-4 victory in the QF. Then, yet again, in the same year, fans witnessed yet another three-set thriller at the QF of the 2022 Delray Beach Open.

Opelka hammered 19 aces and didn’t commit a single, double fault in the entire match. However, Mannarino could only manage to hit 6 aces and committed 4 double faults. The American won 85% of his first serve and 60% of his second serve, but the Frenchman recorded 73% and 70%, respectively. Adrian Mannarino converted one out of his one breakpoint, while Opelka managed to convert two out of his five. Now, looking at all these stats can we jump to any predictions?

Prediction: Mannarino to win in three sets

Although Opelka has a clear edge in the H2H, we would still like to put Adrian Mannarino over him this time! Reason? Opelka needs a bit more time to get back to his rhythm. Both of these players have reached the 17th rank in the world and that’s the highest they have reached in their entire career so far. Opelka is currently ranked 1188 in the world, whereas Mannarino is ranked 25 in the world. The Frenchman has a win-loss record of 9-18 this season, whereas Opelka hasn’t really had the match time he’d have wanted. His win-loss record is currently 1-1.

Opelka, who stands at nearly 7 ft tall, possesses one of the most vicious and powerful serves on the Tour. Apart from that, he has incredible volleys to topple his opponents. Adrian Mannarino, on the other hand, is more of a defensive baseliner and counterpuncher. He’s a master at redirecting pace and putting his opponents in uncomfortable positions. On any given day, the American would’ve had the edge over the Frenchman, but since he is coming back after a long gap, there is a high possibility that he will look a bit shaky this time.