The French Open wrapped up on Sunday with Carlos Alcaraz’s third major title, putting him within one win of the career Grand Slam. Now it’s on to the grass, with the lead-up to Wimbledon beginning in Stuttgart and ‘s-Hertogenbosch. Roland Garros runner-up Alexander Zverev is surprisingly still in the Stuttgart draw, while other players in action this week are Ben Shelton, Alexander Bublik, Andy Murray, Alex de Minaur, and Tommy Paul.
BOSS Open
Where: Stuttgart, Germany
Surface: Grass
Prize money: 734,915 Euros
Points: 250
Top seed: Alexander Zverev
Defending champion: Jan-Lennard Struff
Draw analysis: Obviously what Zverev decides to do will shape the course of this tournament. You have to think the smart play is to withdraw. At the same time, because he lost the French Open final he might want to get back on the court and try to erase some of those demons. The world No. 4 would not have to play until Thursday if that does turn out to be the case, as he owns a first-round bye as the No. 1 seed. If Zverev does turn up, he could face a tough opening match against 2023 Mallorca winner and Wimbledon quarterfinalist Chris Eubanks. Defending Stuttgart champion Jan-Lennard Struff is also part of a loaded top section, while Andy Murray and 2023 runner-up Frances Tiafoe are potential semifinal foes for either Zverev, Struff, or Eubanks.
The bottom half of the bracket is considerably weaker on paper, although things could change if Matteo Berrettini is healthy and Denis Shapovalov—also unseeded—plays the kind of grass-court game that carried him to the 2021 Wimbledon semis. Berrettini vs. Shapovalov is a potential second-round showdown, the winner of which could meet Shelton in the quarters. Meanwhile, a fun first-round matchup is Lorenzo Musetti vs. qualifier and recent Lyon champ Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
Hot: Alexander Zverev, Jan-Lennard Struff, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, Flavio Cobolli
Cold: Frances Tiafoe, Roman Safiullin, Pierre-Hugues Herbert, Denis Shapovalov, Andy Murray, Chris Eubanks
Quarterfinal predictions: Jan-Lennard Struff over Chris Eubanks, Jack Draper over Yannick Hanfmann, Alexander Bublik over Dominik Koepfer, and Denis Shapovalov over Ben Shelton
Semifinals: Struff over Draper and Bublik over Shapovalov
Final: Struff over Bublik
Libema Open
Where: ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands
Surface: Grass
Prize money: 690,135 Euros
Points: 250
Top seed: Alex de Minaur
Defending champion: Tallon Griekspoor
Draw analysis: A Dutch champion has triumphed in front of the home crowd each of the past two seasons (Tim van Rijthoven in 2022 and Tallon Griekspoor in 2023). Is a third consecutive crown in the cards for the host nation? It’s not likely given the impressive strength of the ‘s-Hertogenbosch field this year, but Griekspoor definitely has a chance to repeat. The No. 6 seed, who led Zverev by a double-break in the fifth set of their Roland Garros third-round match, is on course to face compatriot Botic van de Zandschulp in round two and fourth-seeded Karen Khachanov in the quarters. The bottom half of the draw also features Paul and fellow American Sebastian Korda.
At the top of the bracket, Van Rijthoven has a winnable opening match against Zizou Bergs but would then run into De Minaur—who is coming off a quarterfinal run in Paris and is considerably better on grass than clay. Of course, nobody on tour is more thrilled on an annual basis to see the season shift from clay to grass than Adrian Mannarino. The French left-hander always has to be a considered a title favorite at any 250 or 500-point event on the green stuff. In fact, he lifted the ‘s-Hertogenbosch trophy in 2019 and has been to at least the quarterfinals on three other occasions.
Hot: Alex de Minaur, Tallon Griekspoor, Zizou Bergs
Cold: Adrian Mannarino, Max Purcell, Botic van de Zandschulp, Tim van Rijthoven, Mackenzie McDonald, Milos Raonic
Quarterfinal predictions: Alex de Minaur over Roberto Bautista Agut, Adrian Mannarino over Ugo Humbert, Tallon Griekspoor over Aleksandar Vukic, and Tommy Paul over David Goffin
Semifinals: De Minaur over Mannarino and Griekspoor over Paul
Final: De Minaur over Griekspoor