Frenchman Julien Benneteau made an impressive start to his Paris Masters campaign on Monday, as he registered a comprehensive 6-4, 7-5 victory over Serbian Victor Troicki and set up second-round clash with his compatriot Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the 2012 Paris Masters, an ATP World Tour 1000 Event, being played here in Paris, France.

Sixth-seeded and 2008 champion Jo-Wilfried Tsonga finished as a runner-up last season at this event. This tournament is pretty important for Tsonga, as he is a leading candidate to qualify for the ATP World Tour Finals, to be played in London. Tsonga has an impressive 53-21 win-loss record for the season and has claimed two titles this year in Metz and Doha. He is gunning for his 10th career title.

Tsonga’s opponent is resilient Julien Benneteau, who is currently ranked as World No. 37 in the world. Though, he turned professional in 2000, thirty year-old Benneteau is still chasing his maiden title on tour. The Frenchman has been pretty consistent on tour and has the ability to upset Tsonga.

In head-to-head, Tsonga has a slender lead with 4-3 against his compatriot. Last time they met in Wimbledon in 2010, where Tsonga rallied past Benneteau in four sets.