Tennis BETTING PREVIEW - Valentin Royer vs Novak Djokovic

Tennis

2026-05-27 - Valentin Royer vs Novak Djokovic

A Sports Betting Preview by FirstDown

Valentin Royer vs Novak Djokovic
Tennis : French Open Second Round
Wednesday 27th May 2026 - Scheduled 4pm
3pm (British Time)

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Preview

Last week, Novak Djokovic turned 39 years old and all of his former rivals have long moved into retirement.

It is no surprise that the body is not able to stand up to the rigours of the Tour as much as previously, but Novak Djokovic reached the Australian Open Final in January and he is convinced there is still a Major left to win. There is a feeling that the window is closing and Djokovic is no longer a player who is going to be worrying about his World Ranking, but the absence of Carlos Alcaraz offers an opportunity and the former World Number 1 is still one of the top clay court performers on the Tour.

At least Novak Djokovic was in 2025- we simply don't know where he stands in 2026 with just one clay court match played in the build up to the French Open, while Djokovic had to dig in before beating home hope Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in four sets in the First Round. After a couple of tight sets that were split, Novak Djokovic moved through the gears and he will appreciate being off the court before three hours had ticked onto the clock, which means having enough time to appreciate the conditions without overburdening himself.

Another Frenchman will be standing in the way in the Second Round of the tournament, but Valentin Royer is going to have to pick up his level if he is going to be celebrating his 25th birthday in a Third Round match on Friday.

Valentin Royer made short work of his First Round opponent, but he had not been in great form prior to the start of the French Open.

In fact, Valentin Royer had lost five of six matches played on the clay courts and his biggest successes in the build up to the French Open have been at Challenger level.

This is going to be a big challenge for a player who has faced two top 100 Ranked opponents on the clay this season- Valentin Royer has won just 53% of service points played in those two matches, which have led to 63% holds of serve, while the Frenchman has struggled on the return in both to put himself under real pressure.

It does feel like a big ask to push Novak Djokovic- even this current undercooked version- and the latter looked to be rolling through the gears by the end of the First Round match.

If he can pick up from where he left off, Novak Djokovic may be able to produce the tennis in this Second Round match to make routine progress and not tax himself too much in what are likely to be brutal conditions on late Wednesday afternoon in this Paris heatwave.

Prediction

The lack of competitive Tennis has to be an issue for Novak Djokovic, but he should still have too much for Valentin Royer in the French Open Second Round on Wednesday.

The Pick :

Valentin Royer 0-3 Novak Djokovic

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

I'll back Novak Djokovic - 6.5 Games @ at 1.72 with Bet365