French Open 2025: Emilio Nava vs Botic van de Zandschulp preview, head-to-head, prediction, odds and pick

Match Details

Fixture: (WC) Emilio Nava vs Botic van de Zandschulp

Date: May 25, 2025

Tournament: French Open

Round: First Round (Round of 128)

Venue: Stade Roland Garros, Paris, France

Category: Grand Slam

Surface: Clay

Prize Money: €56,352,000

Live Telecast: USA - TNT Sports, TruTV, HBO Max | UK - Eurosport | Canada - TSN, RDS

Emilio Nava vs Botic van de Zandschulp preview

Emilo Nava at the US Open 2024. (Photo: Getty)

Emilio Nava will lock horns with Botic van de Zandschulp in the first round of the French Open 2025.

Nava has exclusively competed on the Challenger circuit this year and has stuck to clay as well. He started the season with a quarterfinal showing in Buenos Aires and a semifinal finish in Punta del Este. After a few early exits, he kicked off his incredible streak of three consecutive titles.

Nava bagged the titles at the Asuncion, Concepcion and Sarasota Challengers. He reached the final of the Tallahassee Challenger after that but came up short in it, bringing an end to his 19-match winning streak. He recently lost in the first round of the Savannah Challenger and the second round of the Tunis Challenger.

Van de Zandschulp commenced his clay swing at the Tiriac Open in Bucharest. He lost to Richard Gasquet in the first round, who staged a comeback to beat him. He was bundled out in the qualifying rounds of the BMW Open in Munich but got a second shot as a lucky loser.

Van de Zandschulp beat Roberto Bautista Agut in the first round before losing to Ben Shelton in the second round. He retired in the third set during his first-round match against Jan-Lennard Struff at the Madrid Open. This will be his first tournament since then.

Emilio Nava vs Botic van de Zandschulp head-to-head

This will be the first meeting between the duo, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.

Emilio Nava vs Botic van de Zandschulp odds

Player	Moneyline	Handicap Bets	Total Games
Emilio Nava	+105	-1.5 (+170)	Over 38.5 (-125)
Botic van de Zandschulp	-135	+1.5 (-250)	Under 38.5 (-115)

(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)

Emilio Nava vs Botic van de Zandschulp prediction

Botic van de Zandschulp at the BMW Open 2025. (Photo: Getty)

Van de Zandschulp has a 1-3 record on clay in main draw matches at the ATP level this year. He's also making his comeback after a brief injury hiatus. He has a 3-4 record at the French Open and has faltered at the very first hurdle for the past two years.

Nava's impressive performances at the Challenger level earned him a wildcard into the main draw of the French Open. This will be his second appearance in Paris, following his first-round exit on his debut in 2023. He has probably played the most matches on clay compared to other players in the draw this year.

Even though it's at the Challenger level, Nava's 30-9 record on clay this year is quite impressive. Against a player like van de Zandschulp, who's struggling with his form, the American's results make him the clear favorite to win this match. This is probably his best shot at notching up his first win in Paris, given his own form and his opponent's struggles.

Pick: Emilio Nava to win in four sets.

About the author

Rohit is a journalist at Sportskeeda who specializes in covering tennis. Having been with the company for three years, he has proven himself as a formidable force in the field. With a Master's degree in law, Rohit brings his analytical and research skills to the forefront as a journalist. He stays on top of the game by using social media platforms and never misses a match for on-court insights. He values giving credit where it's due, keeping his reporting fair and accurate.

At the outset of his career, Rohit found his niche in writing previews and SEO pieces and it's this expertise that continues to define his role at Sportskeeda. He is particularly proud of one article that garnered an impressive 750k views and surpassed his "wildest dreams." Rohit is not particularly fond of (GOAT) debates and it is one of the reasons why he left the legal world behind. He prefers to view players in "tiers," where they're all esteemed to an extent. However, if pressed to name favorites, he would choose Serena and Venus Williams. The Williams sisters' journey from humble beginnings to the pinnacle of tennis has been his greatest source of inspiration.

When he isn't busy making spot-on predictions about match outcomes, Rohit likes reading, particularly fantasy, sci-fi, and comics. As an X-Men fanatic, he's also passionate about board games and enjoys watching movies in his spare time. And don't be surprised if you catch him silently wishing to the tennis gods for the removal of ad scoring from doubles.

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