Jo-Wilfried Tsonga has a tough second round clash against Ivan Ljubicic in the second round of the Monte Carlo Masters today.
Tsonga was involved in a lengthy three set battle on day two of the Monte Carlo Masters as his tussle with Juan Monaco kept spectators enthralled throughout the afternoon session. Eventually the home favourite prevailed 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 but only after a number of scares.
"I showed a lot of willpower, I had a good attitude, and I was aggressive," Tsonga told the press afterwards. "I chose some tactics at the beginning. I realised it was not working well because he was able to return all my loops, so I was able to change my tactics and play more directly to him. It worked pretty well. I approached the net and tried to mix up my game. I think there are many things I liked in my game today, and I played a very good match."
At his peak, Ljubicic reached the French Open semi-finals back in 2006 but in recent years the 32 year old has not enjoyed anything like that kind of success on clay. However he started strongly with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Jeremy Chardy on Sunday.
They are locked at 2-2 on the head-to-head. Tsonga won 6-4, 7-6 in the Rotterdam semi-finals earlier this year but they have never played before on clay.
Prediction: Tsonga in two
