Early favourites for Roland-Garros
As we approach the start of the French Open, otherwise known as Roland-Garros, anticipation is building amongst tennis fans for the second Grand Slam of the year. Two weeks of intense competition in Paris as the tournament is set to return at maximum capacity for the first time since 2019 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Last year’s 125th anniversary, held behind closed doors, saw Novak Djokovic reign supreme as part of his memorable year, but with the Serbian absent from the Australian Open back in January, this year’s competition is all to play for.
It certainly looks to be a close affair when checking the odds to win Roland Garros 2022, with a plethora of candidates after a first Grand Slam of the year and others looking for that maiden title on the Parisian clay. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the early favourites for this year’s French Open.
Carlos Alcaraz
Let’s start with the recent Madrid Open winner Carlos Alcaraz. At just 19 years old, the Spaniard is looking like the next big thing in the world of tennis, and with victories over Djokovic and Alexander Zverev in his home country, there’s every reason to believe this good form will carry over to Paris. Set to rise to sixth in the world Alcaraz will garner much of the attention in his opening games, with even Djokovic singing his praises after victory in Madrid.
“He definitely is special,” he said. “Already he’s breaking a lot of records as a teenager, winning two Masters events this year, a couple of 500s. So far he’s the best player in the world, no question, this year with the results that he’s been doing.”
Rafael Nadal
Sticking to the theme of Spaniards, there’s a reason Rafael Nadal is tipped as the favourite for the tournament. Having suffered so many injuries, the ‘King of Clay’ Nadal will be eager to return to build on his Australian Open success with another Grand Slam victory at Roland-Garros.
The only concern the 35-year-old will have is if his body can maintain itself throughout the duration of the tournament. A rib injury forced him out of the Indian Wells and missing both Monte Carlo and Barcelona, Nadal will want to come back with a bang and replicate the kind of performance he put in against Daniil Medvedev back in January to really establish himself as one of the sport’s best once again.
Alexander Zverev
Fresh off the back of defeat in Madrid, there’s no reason to suggest why Alexander Zverev can’t put things right at Roland-Garros. The 25-year-old is yet to get over the line in a Grand Slam but having reached the semi-final in Monte Carlo and the quarters in Miami, there’s every reason to believe he can reach the latter stages in Paris. Zverev will need to work on his temperament though, with his blast at the ATP scheduling not doing him any favours heading into a tournament of such magnitude.
Novack Djokovic
With so many accolades to his name, it’s impossible to overlook Djokovic, despite his form this year. The 20-time Grand Slam winner was cleared to play in the tournament after his vaccine status meant he was unable to defend his Australian Open title — eventually won by Nadal. Djokovic beat Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas in last year’s final after coming back from two sets down, and he’ll need to channel that kind of performance if he is to retain his title in this year’s Roland-Garros.