French Open Tennis Championship, the second tournament of the season The Grand Slam kicks off on Sunday in Paris. Among his favorites are Russians Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev, who should be helped by victories at the clay Masters in Rome and Monte Carlo, respectively, as well as the absence of 14-time Roland Garros champion Spaniard Rafael Nadal due to injury.
Nadal in 2005 won the French Open on the first attempt, which no one else had succeeded before him, and became the king of this tournament. Rafa won 14 times at Roland Garros, which is also a record. But the Spaniard will not succeed in becoming the triumphant of Paris for the 15th time this season — 10 days before the start, he withdrew due to an injury to the iliopsoas muscle.
«Recovery from injury in Australia did not go as expected and my participation in Roland Garros became impossible. It's a shame, given the importance this tournament has for me,» Nadal said at a special press conference.
In the absence of an eternal favorite, the French Open in men's singles is becoming one of the most unpredictable in the last almost two decades. Almost any of at least eight strongest tennis players in the world can win. And among the contenders for the title — the Russians Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev.
The experience of Rome and Monte CarloMedvedev's chances, for which the clay is the least preferred surface of the courts, this time look very serious. Last week, the Russian player became the winner of the Masters tournament in Rome, one of the most prestigious competitions held on clay courts.
«Maybe now I'm a little less stressed when I play on clay than before,» admitted Medvedev, quoted by tennismajors.com.However, the grid at seeded second Medvedev at the “Roland Garros” is not easy. The draw threw Italian Yannick Sinner, German Alexander Zverev and Croatian Borna Coric into his quarter. And this means that already on the way to the semi-finals, the Russian will have to seriously sweat. Much will depend on how well Daniil recovered from the workload he received in Rome — after all, unlike that tournament, in Paris each match will be held not up to two won games, but up to three. On the ground, this will require additional effort.
As for Rublev, seeded at the French Open under the seventh number, for him the preliminary tournament path looks relatively non-energy, but only until the fourth round, where another Russian tennis player, Karen Khachanov, can get into rivals. The meetings of these guys who know each other perfectly are unpredictable. The one who turns out to be stronger can get Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals. And it would be wrong to award the victory to the ex-first racket of the world in advance — the Serb, who has recently been worried about injuries, does not look invincible.
Rublev also has a victory this season, which allows him to be firmly ranked among the favorites of Roland Garros. In April, the Russian became the triumphant of the most prestigious Masters in Monte Carlo. “I did not expect this,” Rublev admitted in an interview with the official website of Roland Garros. “And this victory gave me confidence, especially after the start of the season, when I had to change a lot, for example, the team.”
The easiest way to decisive matches on paper is with the first racket of the world Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz. In the quarterfinals, he can go to the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, who is not famous for his confident game on the ground. «It's still crazy for me to see myself as the first seed,» admitted the 20-year-old world tennis leader. «But at the same time it's cool, I enjoy it.»
The French Open could change the balance of power at the top of the PTA rankings. Medvedev, Djokovic and Tsitsipas can take away the title of the first racket of the world from Alcaraz in case of victory in Paris. The Russian will also rise to the first line of the world ranking if he reaches the final and meets there with someone not from the aforementioned three. It is noteworthy that last year's Roland Garros finalist, Norwegian Kasper Ruud, does not participate in the fight for the top position in the classification — even if he wins. Arina Sobolenko from Belarus and Elena Rybakina from Kazakhstan. Last year's champion is Šwiętek, and she will try to become the first tennis player since Belgian Justine Henin to manage to defend her title.
However, the superiority of Šwiętek over other rivals is no longer as overwhelming as everyone has become accustomed to in recent years. So, Sobolenko won the first Grand Slam tournament this season — the Australian Open. And she has a chance to remove the Polish tennis player from the top of the world rankings. She needs to defend 2000 victory points, and the Belarusian has never gone beyond the third round in Paris.
As for the Russian participants, it is not necessary to assume their triumph, unlike the men's bracket — reaching the top eight will be a great success at the tournament. Daria Kasatkina was seeded above the rest of the Russians in Paris — under the eighth number. And she, in case of successful promotion in the tournament, may shine in the quarterfinals against Sobolenko. Veronika Kudermetova is the 11th seed at Roland Garros, and she can play against Swiatek at the same stage.
The total prize fund of the French Open will be a record 49.6 million euros. The winners will each receive 2.3 million in European currency. The competition will last from May 28 to June 11.