Following an exceptional start to his clay court season this year, which includes an undefeated streak with two title wins, Andy Murray will look to carry this momentum forward in his final warm-up event ahead of the French Open. He will begin his Rome campaign against Jeremy Chardy, whom he holds a 5-1 lead over in the head-to-head series.

The world No. 3 maintained his undefeated clay court streak when he defeated Rafael Nadal in straight sets to lift the Mutua Madrid Open title on Sunday. It was Murray’s second win at this event but his first since the tournament moved to clay. Following a solid opening set of tennis, Murray stunned the all-Spanish pro-Rafa crowd by breaking for a 4-0 lead in the second set. From there, he finished the match 6-3,6-2 for his first win against Nadal on clay.

“I think I wasn’t expecting this a couple of weeks ago, so when things are unexpected, it feels nicer,” admitted Murray. “I didn’t feel like I put too much pressure on myself the past couple of weeks, which is a good thing

It is difficult to determine the outcome of this particular contest. On one hand, Murray’s recent streak is a positive sign for his French Open goals, yet he may also be worn out following two action-packed weeks on the tour. He leads Chardy 5-1 and should have little trouble advancing, yet he may need three sets to get the job done this time around.

Jeremy Chardy denied a potentially dramatic rematch between Murray and Lukas Rosol when he defeated the Czech No. 2 in straight sets 7-6,6-4 to advance to the second round of the tournament. He struck 10 aces, won 78% of his first service points and saved the only break point he faced to close out the match in one hour and 37 minutes.