The hunt for the 2026 French Open title is now wide open following Sinner’s exit and in the third round we have some exciting matchups to look forward to. The 39-year-old Novak Djokovic faces 19-year-old Brazilian breakout star Joao Fonseca in what is a must see match to watch. We also have two exciting youngsters to battle each other for the first time, in Rafa Jodar vs Alex Michelsen.
Djokovic vs Fonseca
- Tournament: 2026 French Open
- Stage: Round of 32 (Third Round)
- Date: Friday, May 29, 2026
- Venue: Court Philippe-Chatrier, Paris
- Time: 15:30 local time (CEST)
The Serbian legend is in pursuit of his 25th Grand Slam title. His path to the third round has been far from smooth and he survived a tough opener against Mpetshi Perricard and then a challenging four-set battle against Valentin Royer in the second round. While he struggled to close out the match in the third set, his ability to regroup and dominate the fourth showed his classic resilience and smart strategies. More on Djokovic racquet.
Fonseca has shown mixed results on tour for a while but is starting to make a name for himself in Paris. The Brazilian got into the third round after a tough, five-set comeback victory against Dino Prizmic which was impressive. Fonseca is a high-energy, aggressive baseliner who has expressed deep respect for Djokovic, calling him the “GOAT of the sport.”
H2H and more
This is the first time these two players will face each other on the professional tour, which of course makes it more unpredictable.
The question for Djokovic will be his physical recovery and his ability to remain focused for the entire duration against a younger opponent who is clearly comfortable in long, grinding rallies. This is an area where he never stops to surprise though.
Predictions
Novak Djokovic enters the match as the clear favorite, around odds 1.50 (-200) mostly due to his experience in Slams and as he still seem to have the energy to get through these long battles on this stage. I think, right now, he will have a tough time against the best on tour but the question is if Fonseca can get to that level? While Fonseca is still slightly inconsistent at times, Djokovic will take advantage of this and I’m predicting the Serb to take this in 4 tough sets, at least one tie-break.
Michelsen vs Jodar
In another interesting clash today we find the two youngsters Alex Michelsen and Rafael Jodar, both in good form.
- Tournament: 2026 French Open
- Stage: Round of 32 (Third Round)
- Date: Friday, May 29, 2026
- Venue: Court Simonne-Mathieu, Paris
- Time: 12:10 local time (CEST)
Once again we have two players facing each other for the first time.
Jodar has looked extremely impressive in the past few months and got into back-to-back Masters 1000 quarterfinals in Madrid and Rome apart from claiming his first ATP title (Marrakech). So far in Paris he got through Aleksandar Kovacevic in straight sets and then needed 4 sets to get the victory over James Duckworth.
Michelsen has been mixed and quite inconsistent on clay but he has enjoyed a very good tournament in Paris so far. The American has navigated his way into the third round with some good tennis. He beat Shevchenko quite easily and then took down Basavareddy over four sets to reach this match.
Predictions
Michelsen has looked good so far at the Roland Garros but I think it stops here. Jodar is playing at a superb level right now and is more comfortable on clay overall. Jodar to win in 4 sets.