The world No. 1, the Australian Open champion, and a pair of fast-court specialists headline our preview of Day 2 men’s action at Wimbledon.

Rafael Nadal v. Martin Klizan

Klizan is a bit of an unknown commodity on grass, particularly at Wimbledon. The Slovakian is making just his third appearance in the main draw here at Wimbledon and has only played 10 tour-level matches on grass throughout his entire career.

At the moment, Rafael Nadal is also an enigma of sorts on the green stuff. The Spaniard has not won a match on grass since 2012 and has been defeated by three opponents outside the top 80 in his last three grass-court matches.

Nadal will be wary of Klizan, who is exactly the type of opponent that has traditionally given him difficulties on grass. Klizan is a lefty with an massive forehand stroke capable of doing damage on any surface against any opponent. His backhand is the side that tends to break down, but he does not shy away from taking it early and flattening it out.

Nadal’s level of initiative when returning should prove to be vital. In his last three grass losses, Nadal has often placed himself in too many defensive positions as a result of blocking and chipping back returns. Klizan is no Ivo Karlovic, but his serve is solid enough to put Nadal on the defensive assuming Nadal’s passive returning remains unchanged.

The only previous meeting between these two came in the first round of the French Open in 2013. Nadal actually dropped the first set in this match before restoring order and winning in four. Klizan exhibited a hyper-aggressive style of play in this match, a game plan more conducive to grass and one that he’ll have to employ tomorrow.

Prediction: Nadal in four sets

Gilles Muller v. Julien Benneteau

In a match that will likely decide who Roger Federer’s tricky second-round opponent is, Gilles Muller of Luxembourg will look to continue his highly successful spring as he squares off against recent French Open doubles champion Julien Benneteau.

Three months ago, Muller didn’t even have an official ATP ranking. On the back of four Challenger titles, he has moved up to No. 108 and was able to find a spot in the main draw at SW19 through the qualifying tournament, where he did not drop a single set.

Julien Benneteau, while not an idyllic opener for Muller, should provide fans a highly intriguing affair between two of the most skilled unseeded players in the draw. Benneteau soared to the spotlight at Wimbledon when he nearly took out Roger Federer in the third round in 2012. He was two points away from victory before the Swiss was able to grab control of the match and ultimately go on to win his 17th Grand Slam.

If all goes as planned, we could be in for a high-octane combination of old-school grass tennis and modern power and ingenuity. Benneteau’s baseline bashing and Muller’s serve and volley style should produce plenty of quick, fiery rallies.

Where the separation in this match may come is from Muller’s baseline play. He hits a flat ball off both sides and likes to mix it up with his slice backhand. He’s not the greatest lateral mover, and Benneteau’s power should be a stern challenge for his limitations on the baseline and will test his ability to continually flatten out his groundstrokes.

Benneteau and Muller most recently met in the first round of Wimbledon back in 2012. Muller has only been able to get the best of the Frenchman on one occasion, back in 2005 at the Stella Artois Grass Court Championships. Muller has been in fine form as of late, but expect Benneteau’s baseline superiority to reign supreme.

Prediction: Benneteau in five sets

Stanislas Wawrinka v. Joao Sousa

After his victory in Melbourne, and especially after his title in Monte Carlo, few would have expected Stan Wawrinka to drop his opening match in the first round of the French Open. However, the past doesn’t dictate the present and tennis, like almost all sports, asks the question, “What have you done today?”

In the last two months, the Swiss has only won four matches, three of which came at Queen’s Club two weeks ago. Wawrinka has been through the highest of highs this season, but he’s also experienced some bizarre, seemingly inexplicable lows.

Joao Sousa, an intrepid 25-year-old from Portugal, will be looking to pounce on any sign of fragility Wawrinka brings to the court on Tuesday. Sousa has played a grand total of six tour-level grass matches in his career, all of which occurred in the last two weeks in Halle and ‘s-Hertogenbosch. Having reached the semifinals of the latter and taking a set from Roger Federer in the second round of the former, Sousa has proven that he is not just a one-trick pony who can only play on hard courts.

Grass is by far Wawrinka’s weakest surface. He prefers to have more time to set up and take calculated, well-engineered cuts at balls, primarily off his backhand. This is not to say Wawrinka cannot withstand the pace of powerful opponents, but he is certainly less effective when rushed. Wawrinka also struggles with the return of serve on all surfaces and sometimes finds himself unable to produce anything more than a rudimentary block when facing a potent serve.  

Against Federer, Sousa was teeing off on as many shots as possible. He did a tremendous job of fashioning together short points with his serve-forehand combination and maintaining his composure throughout a vigorously fought first-set tiebreak.

Over a best-of-five match, the challenger is astronomically greater for Sousa, and Wawrinka’s gap in talent should prevail.

Prediction: Wawrinka in four sets