Chris Eubanks will begin his Mallorca title defense on Tuesday, while No. 2 seed Ugo Humbert gets underway on the heels of a first-round bye. They are facing Jakub Mensik and Roberto Bautista Agut, respectively.
(8) Chris Eubanks vs. Jakub Mensik
Eubanks’ first and only ATP title came at the Mallorca Championships one year ago. It touched off the best hot streak of his career, as the 6’7” American followed up that result with a quarterfinal run at Wimbledon. Among the opponents he defeated at those two events were Alex Michelsen, Ben Shelton, Arian Mannarino, Cameron Norrie, and Stefanos Tsitsipas. Eubanks’ 2024 campaign has been a disappointment, but he was up to his usual tricks on grass last week with a quarterfinal showing in Halle.
Up first for the world No. 42 on Tuesday is first-ever meeting with Mensik. The 18-year-old Czech has earned 10 of his 13 lifetime main-tour match victories this season and has climbed to 85th in the rankings. Although Mensik is one of the most talented up-and-comers in the sport, he had never played a match on grass prior to 2024 and is 0-2 on it so far this summer. On any other surface this would be Mensik’s match to win, but in all likelihood Eubanks will give him a grass-court lesson.
Pick: Eubanks in 3
Roberto Bautista Agut vs. (2) Ugo Humbert
Whereas Eubanks and Mensik are wrapping up first-round action, the second round begins with Humbert and Bautista Agut going head-to-head for the second time in their careers. They previously faced each other on the indoor hard courts of Montpellier in 2021, when Bautista Agut prevailed 6-3, 6-3.
Since that encounter, Humbert has played the best tennis of his life by a mile–which has coincided with a downturn in Bautista Agut’s trajectory. Humbert ended last season with a title in Metz and has already won two tournaments in 2024, a big reason why he is 16th in the rankings. Bautista Agut destroyed Taro Daniel 6-1, 6-0 on Sunday, but he still has a losing record this season (11-12). The 36-year-old Spaniard is all the way down at No. 122 in the world. Bautista Agut is very good on grass, but Humbert also likes the green stuff and it doesn’t give the underdog enough of an advantage to overcome the sizable discrepancy in current form.
Pick: Humbert in 3
