Three to See, Day 5: Daniil Medvedev vs. Laslo Djere; Frances Tiafoe vs. David Goffin; Alizé Cornet vs. Jelena Ostapenko

MATCH POINT: Tiafoe defeats Bonzi in the first round

Daniil Medvedev vs. Laslo Djere

For once, Roland Garros has flipped its Court Philippe Chatrier schedule, gender-wise. On Thursday, the men will open the proceedings, while the women get the night match. That means Medvedev, the No. 2 seed, will be out there bright and early—or by noon, at least—to take on the 56th-ranked Djere. The Russian will be favored, but there are a couple of reasons to think this might be more interesting than it appears on paper. In their one previous meeting, in 2017, Djere won the first set 6-0 before Medvedev retired at 5-5 in the second. And while Medvedev was recovering from hernia surgery this spring, Djere, who has won two titles on clay, pushed Stefanos Tsitsipas through two close sets in Monte Carlo, and pushed Novak Djokovic through three even closer sets in Belgrade. Maybe he can do the same here. Winner: Medvedev

Frances Tiafoe vs. David Goffin

The 48th-ranked Belgian and the 27th-ranked American have had their moments on clay this spring. Goffin came out of qualifying in Madrid and had match points against Rafael Nadal, before losing in a third-set tiebreaker. Tiafoe, meanwhile, won four straight three-set matches to reach the final in Estoril. Considering that they’re not in the Djokovic-Nadal section of the draw, each of these guys may like his chances of getting into the second week. Goffin won their first three meetings, but Tiafoe won the fourth, in Miami in 2019. Clay is probably the better surface for Goffin, who has been to the quarterfinals in Paris. But youth is on Tiafoe’s side, and that might make a difference if this match goes past the three-set mark. Winner: Tiafoe

Alizé Cornet vs. Jelena Ostapenko

As I wrote above, the women will take over the night session for the first time. Roland Garros schedulers have clearly chosen this match for its dramatic possibilities. Ostapenko and Cornet both bring their share of it when they walk on court, and both have been known to irritate an opponent or two. So we’ll see if any sparks fly when the Frenchwoman, who will have the crowd on her side, faces off against the 2017 champion. From a playing perspective, it could go either way. The head-to-head between Cornet and Ostapenko stands at 2-2; this is the first time they’ll play on clay. Winner: Ostapenko