H2H: Jo Wilfried Tsonga vs. Rafael Nadal - Prediction (ATP Paris

Preview and players comparison.

While Rafael Nadal hasn’t played a semifinal match on indoor hardcourt since 2015, the Frenchman has won two titles on the surface in 2019 alone — in Metz and Montpellier. On any other surface, Rafael Nadal would be the clear favorite to win this matchup, but playing on indoor hardcourt does give Jo Wilfried Tsonga an outside chance of causing an upset.

Rafael Nadal put in a perfect performance to overcome former world #3 Stan Wawrinka in the round of 16 on Thursday, 6-4 6-4. The Spaniard is yet to drop his serve this week as he secured a routine straight-set win over Adrian Mannarino in the previous round, 7-5 6-4. With this run, world #2 Rafael Nadal extended his winning streak on the main tour to 14 matches, which earned him a couple of big titles in the US Open and Montreal Masters. Rafael Nadal has got an impressive 9-0 record in the quarterfinal matches so far in 2019, but his recent two Paris Masters campaigns ended in the quarterfinal against Stan Wawrinka in 2015 and Filip Krajinovic in 2017 (walkover).

Rafael Nadal lost his position at the top of ATP World Rankings in the first week of November 2018, and he will return to the top in the first week of November 2019 as the Spaniard is guaranteed the #1 spot next Monday, regardless of what happens in Paris this week. However, the Spaniard’s objective is to finish the season as the year-end #1, and he can achieve that by winning the title in Paris Masters this week, something that he has never done so far in his hugely successful career.

Jo Wilfried Tsonga fought back from a set down to knock out Jan Lennard Struff in the round of 16, 2-6 6-4 7-6. The Frenchman is looking good this week as he stopped the in-form Andrey Rublev and London aspirant Matteo Berrettini in the previous rounds. Former world #5 Jo Wilfried Tsonga won the biggest title of his career here in Paris Masters back in 2008 and has got a 2-3 record in the quarterfinal matches here with the recent such match ending in a straight-set defeat against Milos Raonic in 2016.