2026 French Open

Ben Shelton vs Raphael Collignon Tips, Prediction & Live Stream - Collignon primed for Roland Garros upset

Andrew Hendrie

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Last updated: Thu 28 May 2026 01:20

Andrew Hendrie 1 hour ago

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Ben Shelton vs Raphael Collignon predictions for Thursday's French Open R2 match
Collignon has a winning record vs top 20 players - tipped for the upset
Both players tend to play lots of tiebreaks - that's the main play here
The match is scheduled to start around 1.00am AEST on Friday May 29

Raphael Collignon (Photo by Getty Images)

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Ben Shelton vs Raphael Collignon Tips, Prediction & Live Stream

One of the most highly-anticipated matches of the day pits fifth seed Ben Shelton up against the dangerous Raphael Collignon as the pair clash for a spot in the French Open third round on Thursday night.

Ben Shelton vs Raphael Collignon Tips, Prediction & Live Stream
Shelton vs Collignon Stats & Trends
Shelton vs Collignon Head To Head
Ben Shelton Form Analysis
Raphael Collignon Form Analysis
Shelton vs Collignon Live Stream

This one has potential to be an epic and I've been waiting for Collignon to get an opportunity like this in a slam. The Belgian took the opening set over Lorenzo Musetti at the Australian Open to start the year, but his body let him down and he was forced to retire. It's a reoccurring problem with Collignon, but when fully fit and firing, I believe he's a top 20 player with a very high ceiling.

Shelton always raises his level for the majors and he has a dominant 10-1 record in second round matches - however, none of those opponents have been ranked higher than Collignon or anywhere near the same level.

With this match being played at night, Shelton won't get the same pop behind his serve, while he won just 39 per cent of second serve points in his opening round against Daniel Merida. A better player like Collignon could make him pay if he repeats those numbers.

Collignon has a winning record over top 20 players throughout the last 12 months and he's been warming up towards a big slam scalp - Thursday night in Paris could just be the moment, but I am weary of his body letting him down in a long match again, so main plays are 1+ tiebreak and the Belgian to win 2+ sets, with a smaller stake on the outright victory.

Shelton vs Collignon Stats & Trends

Shelton has seen 1+ tiebreak in 11 of his last 15 matches
Shelton has seen 1+ tiebreak in 12 of his last 16 matches vs lower-ranked players
Shelton has dropped 1+ set in four of his last five matches vs lower-ranked players
Collignon has won 11 of his last 13 matches at all levels
Collignon has a 4-3 record in his career vs top 20 players
Collignon has seen 1+ tiebreak in four of his last five matches vs top 20 players
Collignon has seen 1+ tiebreak in six of his last seven tour-level matches

Shelton vs Collignon Head To Head

This will be the first career meeting between the pair.

Ben Shelton Form Analysis

2026 Record: 19-8
French Open Record: 5-3
Current Ranking: No. 5
Career-High Ranking: No. 5 (Nov 2025)

Shelton’s 2026 campaign has been somewhat patchy, but he has still climbed to a career-high ranking of World No. 5 and claimed multiple ATP titles in a season for the first time.

The American made another impressive start in Melbourne, advancing to the Australian Open quarter-finals before securing the ATP 500 crown in Dallas.

His momentum stalled during the Sunshine Swing due to illness, with Shelton unable to produce his best tennis at Indian Wells and Miami. However, he rebounded strongly on clay in Munich, where he captured a second ATP 500 title for the year.

Despite that breakthrough, Shelton has struggled to maintain consistency on the surface over the past month. He suffered early exits in Madrid and Rome to Dino Prizmic and Nikoloz Basilashvili respectively, before falling to Daniel Altmaier in the second round of Hamburg last week.

Shelton consistently raises his level for the slams and he was impressive in his Roland Garros opener, easing past Daniel Merida 6-3 6-3 6-4 with a first serve percentage of 76 - it will be interesting if he can maintain that high number going forward in the tournament.

Raphael Collignon Form Analysis

2026 Record: 8-5
French Open Record: 1-0
Current Ranking: No. 62
Career-High Ranking: No. 59 (Feb 2026)

Collignon is a much better player than his current ranking suggests - you won't find many, if any, players around No. 60 in the world with a winning career record over top 20 players and also a positive tour-level record for the year after five months.

The Belgian always seems to be carrying a niggling injury of some sort, which has restricted him stringing together consistent tournaments on the main tour.

The 24-year-old has impressed in some strong Challenger tournaments on clay over the last month, winning the title in Monza and finishing runner-up in Bordeaux.

Collignon is making his Roland Garros debut this tournament and he was untroubled in his first round, cruising past Aleksandar Vukic 6-3 6-3 7-6(4).