2024 ATP Paris Masters Preview: Taylor Fritz Top American

By Shane Lambert

The 2024 Paris Masters will start main draw action on Monday, October 28th. The draw has been released, but the main draw qualifiers will not be settled until Sunday evening. When Monday's action begins, tennis fans cannot expect any of the top seeds to be in the order of play. The top eight seeds, including Jannik Sinner, will have byes into the round of 32 later in the week. But there still are some major stars who will be in action in the round of 64, including some American talent.

2024 Paris Masters: American Players Expected in the Round of 64

Key American players who will be in the first round of the draw include Tommy Paul, Frances Tiafoe, and Ben Shelton. Paul will face a home-country favorite in Adrian Mannarino, a veteran who is starting to fade a little bit on tour. Mannarino, who is now 36 years old, is a wild card in the 2024 Paris Masters. He has sunk in the rankings throughout the 2024 ATP season. You have to think Paul will be feeling pretty confident in the upcoming match.

Tiafoe has a favorable match-up as well. He will face Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard. Mpetshi Perricard is a 21-year-old French player who has been making strides on tour. On Sunday, Mpetshi Perricard was scheduled to appear in the final of the Swiss Indoors Basel tournament. That does speak well to his form but he might be tired heading into the Paris Masters first round. If Tiafoe is taking himself seriously, then he has a good chance in the Paris draw. But he has not played well since losing in the US Open semifinals.

Accordingly, Tiafoe's chances in the Paris draw are tough to read. He is a talented player but he has hit a bit of a slump. It could be that his run to the Flushing Meadows semifinals took a lot out of him.

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Ben Shelton is at a tough time in his season for scheduling. As of late Saturday, his first-round opponent in Paris is not known. But Shelton is also in the Swiss Indoors Basel final. He will face Mpetshi Perricard in the championship match from Switzerland. Shelton could have some trouble in Paris, coming off of a deep run in Basel. Like Tiafoe, Shelton is also a tough read heading into Paris but for different reasons. He is talented and his service game should play well in indoor events. But Shelton might be tired after his efforts in Basel. Keep a close eye on news from his camp on Sunday and Monday.

Other Americans to be aware of in the first round are Alex Michelsen and Brandon Nakashima. Both have shown some potential during the 2024 season. Michelsen bounced out of the Vienna first round several days ago. He should be well rested for the Paris Masters with an upcoming match against the reeling Hubert Hurkacz. Nakashima was also in Vienna last week, where he took out Tommy Paul before falling to Karen Khachanov. Nakashima will face Ugo Humbert in the first round from Paris, a very tricky French player who will be keen to do well in his home country's event.

2024 Paris Masters: Jannik Sinner Top Seeded

The high seeds in the tournament will take to the courts in the second round. Taylor Fritz is the only American among the top eight seeds for the tournament. If the seeds held up until the quarterfinals, then the following matchups would take place:

(1) Jannik Sinner vs (5) Taylor Fritz
(3) Alexander Zverev vs (6) Andrey Rublev
(8) Grigor Dimitrov vs (4) Daniil Medvedev
(7) Casper Ruud vs (2) Carlos Alcaraz

Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic is the most notable absence from the 2024 Paris Masters.

"Unfortunately I won't be playing @rolexparismasters this year. Sorry to everyone who was hoping to see me play there," Djokovic wrote in an Instagram Story.

Lastly, Sebastian Korda is a notable American player who will not be in the tournament this season. Korda has not played since the US Open due to an elbow injury. Fans of the American might be looking to the 2025 ATP season for his return.

2024 Rolex Paris Masters Main Draw Day 1