The clay-court swing is well underway, and many of the WTA Tour’s greatest talents will soon be setting their sights on Roland Garros.
Coco Gauff will be hoping to win a second consecutive title in Paris, after defeating Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s final.
This year, Sabalenka will be hoping to win her fifth Grand Slam title at Roland Garros, and her first on the Parisian red clay.
How many Grand Slams will Aryna Sabalenka win this year?
She looks unstoppable right now!
However, Elena Rybakina has emerged as a potential contender for the French Open title, particularly after winning her second title in Stuttgart.
Steve Johnson, the former world number 21 on the ATP Tour, has discussed who he believes is the current favourite for the Roland Garros title.
Steve Johnson says Aryna Sabalenka is the Roland Garros favourite
John Isner, a former Miami Open champion, began the Nothing Major discussion by ruling out Coco Gauff as the favourite.
I don’t think you can say Coco,” said Isner. “I know she is the defending champion.”
Steve Johnson then offered his take, stating his favourite for the Roland Garros title between Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina.
“Sabalenka is the favourite,” he said. “She has made the finals of every Slam. She is number one.
“But [Rybakina] is great on any surface. Her serve is phenomenal, she can hit through anyone.
“If there is a slow day at the French, which can be really slow, that is not going to help her. But if it’s a hot day, it plays faster than some hard courts. It is tough to move. So it depends on the weather.
Johnson went on to discuss the possibility of Iga Swiatek winning her fifth Roland Garros title.
Swiatek, who reached the semi-finals of last year’s event, recently hired coach Francisco Roig after a poor run of results to start the year.
“But if Iga [Swiatek] can’t really pull it together after losing in the quarters, this is starting to become a little perplexing if you are an Iga fan,” Johnson continued.
“Now we are on clay, somewhere she should dominate, and she is still not playing her best tennis.
“She still has a few tournaments to pull it together, she has to be in the top five conversation, but she is not nearly the favourite for sure.”
The world’s top four players – Sabalenka, Rybakina, Gauff and Swiatek – are all competing in the Madrid Open this week.
Sabalenka is the defending champion: she defeated Gauff in last year’s final.
This year, Sabalenka has received a bye and will play Peyton Stearns or Lois Boisson in the second round.
Madrid Open potential second-round opponents
- Aryna Sabalenka – Peyton Stearns / Lois Boisson
- Elena Rybakina – Emiliana Ruse / Antonia Ruzic
- Coco Gauff – Oksana Selekhmeteva / qualifier
- Iga Swiatek – Daria Kasatkina / qualifier
The first Madrid Open champion
Dinara Safina, a former world number one, became the first Madrid Open WTA champion in 2009.
The Russian star, the top seed in the Spanish capital, began the event by defeating future two-time Grand Slam champion Na Li.
She then defeated Lucie Safarova, Alona Bondarenko and Patty Schnyder on her way to the championship showpiece.
In the final, Safina defeated future Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki, 6-2, 6-4.
Safina joined her brother – Marat Safin – in winning the Spanish event. Upon Safina’s victory, they became the first siblings to win the Madrid Open.
Safina went on to win the Italian Open, before finishing as runner-up at the French Open.
Safina, who was playing in her second consecutive Roland Garros final, was defeated 4-6, 2-6 by Svetlana Kuznetsova.