Tennis News

Christmas Came Early For Andujar In Paris: ‘These Victories Are A Gift’

Down two sets to love against a player that he has never even taken a set from on three previous occasions, Pablo Andujar took some racquets out of his bag and sent them off to the stringers. He was in for the long haul.

The World No. 68-ranked Spaniard willed himself to a major upset with his 4-6, 5-7, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 comeback victory over fourth seed Dominic Thiem, a two-time Roland Garros finalist. 

“These are gifts that tennis brings you,” said 35-year-old Andujar, grinning in his post-match press conference. “I’m a guy who has never really been on the front covers or in the spotlight, and for me, these two victories are like Father Christmas came early. 

“For me, this is like Father Christmas came and gave me two victories that I could never have dreamed that I could achieve in my career.” 

It’s the second time in the past month that Andujar has gone the distance against one of the game’s best, after facing Roger Federer at his home event in Geneva. Both times, Andujar refused to yield. In Geneva, he claimed a ‘dream’ victory over Federer, and on Sunday at Roland Garros, he took down Thiem for his first Top 5 victory.

Andujar, a four-time ATP Tour titlist, said he had the win over Federer in mind throughout his four-hour and 28-minute first-round battle on Court Philippe Chatrier. Even as Thiem broke serve and seemed set for a comeback in the fifth set, the Spaniard stayed calm to edge back in front and close out the win. 

“I think it’s true that the victory over Roger has made me believe today,” Andujar said. “Maybe in another moment, I wouldn’t have kept fighting in that third set or believing that I could turn it around.”

After the match, Andujar took a moment at the net to commiserate with Thiem. The fourth-seeded Austrian arrived in Paris struggling to find his best tennis, after taking almost two months away from the sport following last year’s US Open victory. 

It’s a feeling that Andujar knows all too well. The Spaniard underwent right elbow surgeries in March 2016, November 2016 and April 2017 – all with different doctors – after achieving his career-high World No. 32 ranking in July 2015. 

“I told him, ‘tough luck’. It’s what I always tell my opponents when I win, and he told me ‘great match and best of luck,’” Andujar revealed. “In the end, it’s not that it felt bittersweet, but it kind of did. Because unfortunately, I know what it feels like. I know that feeling more than winning.

“So always, making sure your rival is okay – because at the end of the day, we’re all peers here – is important and that’s what I was trying to do with Dominic. And besides, he’s a great guy.” 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Pablo Andújar (@pabloandujaroficial)

Into the second round in Paris for the seventh time, Andujar will try to reset and find a way to come back down to earth as he awaits the winner of Radu Albot and Federico Delbonis. He won’t aim to do anything out of the ordinary – instead, he’ll approach his next match the same way he does every match, whether it’s an ATP 250 like Geneva or a Grand Slam clash in Paris.

“I’ve always said that the bad part of my injury was that I had to stop for such a long time, but the good side is that I’ve learned to enjoy all of the tournaments that I play,” Andujar said. “I enjoy every match now. 

“Of course, it’s easier to say this after a win, but it has been a great moment, playing against Dominic Thiem on Philippe Chatrier. This, to me, is a gift and this always helps keep me calm.”

Follow live scores at RolandGarros.com. 

Source link

Doubles Spotlight: Krawietz Chasing A Three-Peat At Roland Garros

When Kevin Krawietz travelled to Paris for Roland Garros, he texted Andreas Mies on the way to the airport. The Germans have won the past two titles at the clay-court Grand Slam. But this time, Krawietz is getting ready to play, and Mies is home recovering from right knee surgery.

“It’s a little bit confusing not to go together,” Krawietz told ATPTour.com.

Krawietz’s season — or at least the one he envisioned — ended before it began. The German team, which has qualified for the past two Nitto ATP Finals, arrived in Melbourne at the start of the year for their 14-day quarantine, during which they were allotted time each day to train.

But Mies was dealing with an injury to his right knee dating back to before last year’s US Open. He knew it was getting worse, and when it became clear that he would not be able to play, both men faced an issue. Mies was staring down surgery on the same knee he had operated on in 2015, and Krawietz was without the partner with whom he ascended from the ATP Challenger Tour to ATP Tour stardom.

“We tried to practise and after that he said, ‘Okay, I think it’s a tough decision, but I think I’ll get the surgery now, because then I can hope to continue a couple more years,’” Krawietz recalled. “Then I was standing there thinking, ‘Okay, what do I do now?’”

Krawietz felt bad his friend and partner had to deal with an injury. But he also had to worry about finding a partner while waiting for Mies to return. He agreed to compete for one week alongside doubles veteran Horia Tecau in Rotterdam. During his drive to the Netherlands, Krawietz paid a visit in Cologne to Mies, who had just had surgery. They enjoyed dinner together and a night of laughs.

As Mies remained on the couch, Krawietz reached the ATP 500 final in Rotterdam with Tecau. The German-Romanian duo have kept going from there and they are currently 11th in the FedEx ATP Doubles Team Rankings.

^{Photo Credit: Henk Koster}
“It’s not easy on one hand. Of course I want him to do well and I want him to win his matches, but of course it hurts a little bit, too. I would like to be next to him and trying to fight together for more titles and more wins together,” Mies said. “We played the past three years together. I accepted the situation. It wasn’t easy at the beginning. The first few weeks were rough because you know you’re out for quite some time. But then I accepted it and now it’s fine for me to watch the matches.

Now Mies is “following everything”, watching most of Krawietz’s matches and even other teams to scout for when he returns. The former Auburn University standout texts Krawietz after virtually every match to share his support. Mies originally hoped to be back for the Tokyo Olympics and if he’s not ready by then, he aims to return by the US Open. But there is a potential dilemma.

What if Krawietz and Tecau keep playing well and climb the Doubles Race to position themselves for a spot in Turin at the end of the year? The German fully intends on reuniting with Mies once the Cologne-native is ready to compete, but a decision will have to be made for the rest of this season if he has an opportunity to reach the Nitto ATP Finals with Tecau and Mies cannot yet play a full schedule. All Krawietz can do now is fully focus on his efforts with the Romanian.

“That’s our goal: to play every tournament, to go for the title and go for the big tournaments trying to beat everybody,” Krawietz said. “It’s very unlucky from Andy’s surgery and I hope he’s getting healthy soon and can compete as soon as possible. But at this moment we’re going day by day, week by week with Horia.”

With the start of Roland Garros, where the Germans made the best memories of their career, Mies admitted, “This is probably the tournament that hurts the most for me to watch.” But for Krawietz, it is another important event at a venue he will always hold close to his heart, even if Mies won’t physically be by his side. The duo spoke on the phone Thursday evening, and Mies gave Krawietz his full support.

“It’s always like you have positive energy. You always have [memories of the] positive things that happened here the past two years,” Krawietz said. “It’s very emotional, but on the other hand I know that’s the past. Of course in 10 years, 20 years when I come back here, it will still be very special. Now it’s a new year, so I’m looking forward to seeing the draw.”

Source link

Paris Power Play: Nadal's 'Halo Effect'

At what rally length does Rafael Nadal strike the most winners at Roland Garros? Conversely, at what rally length do opponents commit the most errors against the Spanish star?

It feels like Nadal overwhelmingly builds the point with a succession of heavily gyrating groundstrokes before finally dispatching the inevitable short ball for a winner to the vacant open court. It also feels like opponent errors are usually a result of a patient escalation of control in the point until Nadal’s power, spin, height, and depth become overwhelming.

Right? Wrong.

An Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers rally analysis of Nadal’s winners and his opponent’s errors (forced and unforced) from Roland Garros last year identifies that the majority of his winners and his opponent’s errors are front-loaded in the point much more than we ever thought.

Nadal’s Serve +1 Winners
Nadal struck more winners on the third shot of the rally than at any other rally length at Roland Garros in 2020. Nadal hit 45 winners on the third shot of the rally, which means his serve went in, the return came back in play, and his ensuing Serve +1 forehand or backhand was dispatched for a winner. No building of the point there. It’s very much about utilising the halo effect of the serve and pairing it with a lethal Serve +1 forehand. That has been the most brutal “one-two” combination in our sport for some time.

For example, in 2010 Nadal hit 83 per cent (56/77) forehands as the first shot after the serve in the Roland Garros final against Robin Soderling. In the 2012 championship match, he hit 80 per cent (63/78) Serve +1 forehands against Novak Djokovic, and 59 per cent (37/63) against David Ferrer in the 2013 final. He won all three matches.

2020 Roland Garros – Nadal Winners By Rally Length

The halo effect of the serve typically lasts for two shots, and that dynamic is exactly what we see in play here. Nadal hits the most winners with his Serve +1 shot (three-shot rally) and his Serve +2 shot (five-shot rally). Long rallies that are odd-numbered are clustered together in nine or more shots, with the same occurring for 10 or more shots with even rallies. Nadal hit the most Serve +1 winners at Roland Garros in 2020 in the second round against Mackenzie McDonald with 10. He struck eight against Novak Djokovic in the final.

Opponent Errors (Forced+Unforced)
When Nadal served, errors flowed freely from his opponent’s racquet. The Spaniard collected 93 return errors at the beginning of the point, with the third shot of the rally grossing the second highest total with 65 errors.

2020 Roland Garros – Nadal Winners By Rally Length

Combined Winners and Errors
Three-shot rallies jump to the top of the table when you add Nadal’s winners with opponent errors (forced and unforced). This rally length is the beating heart of his clay-court prowess. Return errors and rallies ending on the third and fifth shot led the three rally lengths where Nadal won the most points. One, three, and five-shot rallies stand head and shoulders above six, seven, and eight-shot rallies in points won for the Spaniard.

Nadal Winners + Opponent Errors At Roland Garros 2020 by Rally Length

Opponents Winning Points vs. Nadal
Similar match metrics occurred for opponents collecting points against Nadal at Roland Garros last year. Opponents hit the most winners against the Spaniard (30) on the third shot of the rally. They extracted the most errors from him on the fourth shot of the rally (46), followed closely by return errors with 45.

This year, feast your eyes once again on the long, lactic-acid-inducing rallies that Nadal invariably gets into with his opponents on Court Philippe Chatrier. But also keep a watchful eye out for his lethal Serve +1 combination, which will deliver more winners than any of the longer rally lengths.

Nadal wows us with the long, but goes to the bank with the short.

Source link

French Open 2021: Dan Evans waits for first Paris win after Miomir Kecmanovic loss

British number one Dan Evans is still awaiting a first win in the French Open main draw after losing to Miomir Kecmanovic on day one in Paris.

Source link

French Open 2021: Naomi Osaka faces default from Grand Slam for refusing to speak to media

World number two Naomi Osaka faces expulsion from the French Open if she continues to refuse to speak to the media.

Source link

Roland Garros Doubles Draw: Mektic/Pavic Try To Stay Red-Hot

The Roland Garros doubles draw was released on Sunday, and top seeds Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic will be the favourites. The Croatians lead the FedEx ATP Doubles Team Rankings by 2,615 points following a red-hot start to 2021.

Mektic and Pavic have lifted six ATP Tour trophies this year, including three ATP Masters 1000 titles. They will play 2016 champion Feliciano Lopez and his partner, Jaume Munar, in the first round.

Second seeds Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, who have made the semi-finals in three of the past four years in Paris, will face a stiff opening test against British brothers Ken Skupski and Neal Skupski in their opener.

Another interesting first-round encounter pits ninth seeds Kevin Krawietz and Horia Tecau against Ariel Behar and Gonzalo Escobar, who triumphed in Delray Beach and Marbella earlier this season. Krawietz has won the past two Roland Garros titles with Andreas Mies, who is recovering from right knee surgery.

Australian Open champions Ivan Dodig and Filip Polasek are seeded fifth and they will play Andres Molteni and Frederik Nielsen. This tournament also marks the return of a longtime successful partnership, Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo, who had competed with different partners earlier in 2021.

Source link

French Open 2021: Naomi Osaka puts media issue to one side by beating Patricia Maria Tig

Japan’s Naomi Osaka puts the controversy over her refusal to speak to the media to one side as she starts the French Open with a straight-set win.

Source link

Five Challenger Stars To Watch At Roland Garros

For the next fortnight, all eyes will be on the stars of the ATP Tour as they battle for glory at Roland Garros. But as hungry as they will be to lift the Coupe des Mousquetaires, there is another group of competitors that are just as motivated to make a splash at the clay-court Grand Slam. They are the players competing throughout the year on the ATP Challenger Tour.

Securing entry into a Grand Slam is no simple task. It requires year-round focus, hard work and consistency to arrive at this moment. For players grinding on the Challenger circuit, this is the reward. Having the opportunity to test their talents against the best players in the world, and with coveted FedEx ATP Rankings points and prize money at stake, is what drives these players from January to November.

Roland Garros 2021 is no exception. A platform to showcase their skills and eventually take the next step on the ATP Tour, it presents a huge opportunity on a global stage. A strong performance on the terre battue can prove to be career-altering for many Challenger stars, as they target the Top 100 and beyond. So, which players are poised to wreak havoc on the draw? We look at five to watch in Paris…

Benjamin Bonzi (FRA)
The 2021 match wins leader on the ATP Challenger Tour is making his third appearance at his home Grand Slam. If his first two bids on the Parisian clay are any indication of how his 2021 campaign will go, Bonzi will enter with plenty of confidence. In 2017, the Frenchman defeated Daniil Medvedev to reach the second round in his major debut and just last year he upset Emil Ruusuvuori in four sets.

Bonzi, who turns 25 next month, is peaking at the right time. Up to a career-high No. 115 in the FedEx ATP Rankings, the Nimes native is soaring towards the Top 100. He owns a tour-leading 25 match wins this year on the Challenger circuit, including titles on the hard courts of Potchefstroom, South Africa, and clay of Ostrava, Czech Republic. Having previously never lifted a Challenger trophy, Bonzi’s double has made him one of the more feared players this year.

The Frenchman will face Argentine veteran Facundo Bagnis in the first round on the terre battue. A potential second-round date with seventh seed Andrey Rublev looms large.

2021 Challenger Wins Leaders

Jenson Brooksby (USA)
Brooksby enters his first Roland Garros main draw as one of the hottest players on the planet. The #NextGenATP American’s physicality and unrelenting mental drive will be on full display on the red clay. In just his first few months since turning pro, the California native reeled off 19 wins from 21 matches on the ATP Challenger Tour. That included titles on the hard courts of Potchefstroom and Orlando and clay of Tallahassee.

At the age of 20, Brooksby will look to carry the momentum from a stunning run through qualifying that included a comeback from a set and a double break down on Friday. He brings a 13-match win streak into a first round clash with another red-hot player – Aslan Karatsev. It will be the first meeting between the American and the Russian.

Bjorn Fratangelo (USA)
The former World No. 99 Fratangelo is quietly mounting a charge up the FedEx ATP Rankings in 2021, as the American continues his quest to return to the Top 100. After struggling with various injuries in recent years, the 27-year-old is finally healthy and picking up where he left off. A first Challenger title since 2018 came on the hard courts of Cleveland and was followed by a clay-court championship clash against Brooksby in Tallahassee.  

Fratangelo would fall to his countryman in the Tallahassee final, but will take great confidence from an impressive 11-3 mark to open the year. The Pennsylvania native also qualified at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Miami and reached the second round behind an upset of Fernando Verdasco. It was his first match win at the Masters 1000 level in two years.

The 2011 junior champion at Roland Garros returns to Paris for his third appearance in the big show (2016 & 2017). After dropping just one set in qualifying, he will open against Cameron Norrie. A potential third-round encounter with 13-time champion Rafael Nadal looms in the third round.

Arthur Rinderknech (FRA)
Take your pick from the French wild cards. Bonzi is joined by fellow Challenger star Rinderknech, last year’s Roland Garros teen sensation Hugo Gaston and February’s Gran Canaria champion Enzo Couacaud.

It is the former Texas A&M University standout Rinderknech who is Top 10 among Challenger match wins leaders in 2021. Boasting a 15-6 record, his title to open the season in Istanbul set the tone for a strong first quarter. And the 25-year-old hasn’t limited his success to the Challenger circuit. A first ATP Tour match win came in Marseille in March, where he reached the quarters, and just two weeks ago he would streak to another quarter-final in Lyon. It was in Lyon that he scored the biggest win of his career, stunning World No. 17 Jannik Sinner in a deciding set.

Now, Rinderknech is hoping his 2021 tour-level breakthrough will translate to the Grand Slam stage. A first-round meeting with Marin Cilic awaits in Paris, with 2009 champion Roger Federer a potential second round opponent.

Bernabe Zapata Miralles (ESP)
One of the more intriguing under-the-radar match-ups at Roland Garros sees two Spanish qualifiers do battle: Bernabe Zapata Miralles vs. Carlos Alcaraz. We all know about Alcaraz, the 18-year-old setting the professional circuit ablaze with his charge to the Top 100 of the FedEx ATP Rankings.

But don’t sleep on countryman Zapata Miralles. The Valencia native defeated Alcaraz for his maiden Challenger title last year in Cordenons, Italy, and is making his Grand Slam debut on the heels of a second crown in Heilbronn, Germany. Sitting just shy of his career-high No. 126 in the world, Zapata Miralles is making a strong push towards the Top 100. A run to the Round of 16 at the ATP 500 event in Barcelona, where he stunned Fabio Fognini, has him soaring with confidence entering Roland Garros.

Zapata Miralles reeled off six sets in a row from qualifying to punch his ticket to the main draw.

Source link

Preview: Can Tsitsipas Spring His Biggest Surprise Yet In Paris?

Stefanos Tsitsipas wants to be ‘the surprise of the tournament’ at Roland Garros. But the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters champion and FedEx ATP Race To Turin leader will have a hard time flying under the radar in Paris as one of the clay-court season’s standouts.

The real surprise might be that fifth seed Tsitsipas, who starts against a home favourite in Jeremy Chardy, still views himself as an underdog in Paris – despite owning 16 clay-court wins on the season, ahead of Geneva champion Casper Ruud (15) and 13-time Roland Garros winner Rafael Nadal (14).

“Whenever I play, I want to be the surprise of the tournament,” Tsitsipas told press before the tournament. “That’s what I like most about it. Same thing when I played in Toronto [in 2018]. I really enjoyed that week and enjoyed that no one even considered me as the favourite, and it was a great week [defeating Dominic Thiem, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev en route to the final].

“I guess I surprised everyone. I just had to play my tennis and think about nothing else and just felt great overall.”

The Greek will aim to do the same against Chardy on Court Philippe-Chatrier in the opening round. Tsitsipas owns a 2-1 lead in their ATP Head2Head record, but the pair will be contesting their first meeting on clay. The winner could face Parma champion Sebastian Korda, who starts against Pedro Martinez, in the second round.

Tsitsipas seeks to reach the championship match at a Grand Slam for the first time after three semi-final appearances – two at the Australian Open and one at this event last year.

“Anything better than semi-finals, I guess that would be a surprise,” Tsitsipas smiled. “Yeah, why not? Like it’s totally normal, I find it.”

Fourth seed Dominic Thiem also headlines a busy Day 1 at the second Grand Slam of the year. The two-time Roland Garros finalist arrives in Paris still searching for his best clay-court form, and he’ll get a big test in his opening match against Pablo Andujar. The Austrian will aim to play his way into form against the Spaniard, whom he leads by 3-0 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head. 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Dominic Thiem (@domithiem)

“That’s my hope… to work myself into that tournament,” Thiem said in his pre-tournament press conference. “I’m practising and working hard to [at least] give myself a chance to play well. I hope I can do that in the match, as well.

“It’s definitely a little advantage for me, as I’m sometimes a little slow starter, that I have at least three sets instead of two.”

None of Thiem’s previous meetings with the Spaniard have gone to a deciding set, but Andujar will be high on confidence after claiming a career victory over Roger Federer in Geneva two weeks ago.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Alexander Zverev (@alexzverev123)

Mutua Madrid Open champion Alexander Zverev will close out the action at Court Suzanne-Lenglen as he takes on qualifier Oscar Otte in an all-German clash. It will be the two-time Roland Garros quarter-finalist’s first meeting against Otte, who is seeking his first tour-level win of the year (6-7 at ATP Challenger Series level).

Grigor Dimitrov, Roberto Bautista Agut and Karen Khachanov are also among the seeds in action on Sunday. Dimitrov, the 16th seed, will take on Marcos Giron in the opening round as he seeks to reach the quarter-finals in Paris for the first time. Bautista Agut, seeded 11th, will face Spanish qualifier Mario Vilella Martinez in his first match, while Khachanov, the 23rd seed, starts against Czechia’s Jiri Vesely. 

Click here for the full Day 1 Order Of Play.

Source link

Scouting Report: As Nadal Chases History, Can Djokovic Or Tsitsipas Stop Him?

The world’s best players are ready for Roland Garros, the season’s second Grand Slam. Rafael Nadal will chase more history at the tournament where he has rewritten the record books, while World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas will be among the leading players trying to stop him.

Before play gets underway, ATPTour.com looks at 10 things to watch in Paris.

View Draw

1) Will Rafa Overtake Roger? Nadal and Roger Federer are tied for the most Grand Slam titles with 20 each. After missing out on an opportunity to pass the Swiss at the Australian Open, Nadal has another chance to stand alone atop the major record books at the tournament he has already won 13 times.

The legendary lefty brings momentum to Paris after winning his record-equalling 36th ATP Masters 1000 title at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome. Nadal, who is 18-3 on the season, will try to improve his 100-2 record on the terre battue. The third seed will play Alexei Popyrin, whom he defeated in Madrid earlier this year, in the first round.

2) Going For No. 14: Nadal has lifted the Coupe des Mousquetaires 13 times, and he is the favourite to do so once again this year. The 34-year-old was victorious here last October, when he bulldozed through the field without dropping a set. To put what he is trying to do in perspective, if Nadal triumphs this fortnight, he will have the same number of Roland Garros titles as former World No. 1 Pete Sampras owns major crowns (14). When Nadal won in Paris last year, he became the first player in the Open Era to win 13 tour-level singles title at one tournament. The most trophies any other man has captured at a Slam is nine by Djokovic at the Australian Open.

3) Djokovic The Top Seed: While Federer and Nadal will be battling at the top of the Grand Slam leaderboard, Djokovic will be trying to reel them both in. The 2016 champion, who is the top seed, will pursue his 19th major trophy. The Serbian star, who triumphed at the Australian Open earlier this year, will attempt to complete the Melbourne-Paris double for the second time (also 2016).

Djokovic has only lifted the Coupe des Mousquetaires once, but he has tallied 74 match wins at Roland Garros, ranking second behind Nadal (100). The World No. 1 will carry momentum into France, as he clinched the Belgrade Open title on Saturday.

4) Tsitsipas In Form: The Big Three take many of the headlines, but Tsitsipas arrives in Paris as the leader of the FedEx ATP Race To Turin. The Greek star captured his first Masters 1000 crown at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, and he added another trophy in Lyon. At the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, the 22-year-old held championship point against Nadal before the Spaniard rallied for the win. Tsitsipas will have good memories from his efforts in Paris last year, when he pushed Djokovic to five sets in a memorable semi-final thriller. The 2019 Nitto ATP Finals champion also lost a heart-breaking five-setter in 2019 against 2015 champion Stan Wawrinka.

5) Roger Back In Paris: Federer, the 2009 Roland Garros titlist, will return to this event for the first time in two years. The eighth seed is seeded lower here than he has been since 2002 (also eighth), but he remains a tough opponent. The 39-year-old’s .759 winning percentage is good for third among active players. If he advances to the quarter-finals — a stage of the tournament the Swiss has reached 12 times — Federer could play Djokovic in a blockbuster showdown. Nadal is also in their half of the draw. 

6) Thiem Time: Fourth seed Dominic Thiem has twice made the Roland Garros final, but will this be the year he goes one better in Paris? The 27-year-old knows what it takes to win at the Grand Slams, having lifted the trophy at the US Open last year. Thiem can become the first Austrian player to claim two major titles. His countryman, Thomas Muster, won Roland Garros in 1995.

Thiem has not found his best form this clay-court season, losing three of his past four matches. But starting with his first-round match against Pablo Andujar, the 17-time tour-level champion will try to unlock the top levels of his game throughout the tournament.

7) Medvedev Leads Russian Contingent: Team Russia won the ATP Cup earlier this year, and members of that team have played a major role on the ATP Tour this season. Reigning Nitto ATP Finals titlist Daniil Medvedev reached his second Grand Slam final at the Australian Open, but he has only tallied a 1-2 record on clay. The second seed has never won a match at Roland Garros, but he will attempt to turn that around this edition.

Seventh seed Andrey Rublev is second on the ATP Tour this year with 29 wins, trailing just Tsitsipas, who has 33. The 23-year-old made the quarter-finals on the Parisian clay last year. Entering this year’s Australian Open, Aslan Karatsev was relatively unknown, with his ATP Cup team calling him their “secret weapon”. The Russian broke free of that “secret” label quickly by qualifying at Melbourne Park and surging to the semi-finals. Karatsev has maintained his momentum, most notably lifting his first ATP Tour trophy at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and beating Djokovic on clay at the Serbian Open. This is his Roland Garros debut, and he is the 24th seed. Another Russian, Karen Khachanov, is the 23rd seed.

8) #NextGenATP Stars: Two of the 32 seeds in the singles draw are #NextGenATP stars: 18th seed Jannik Sinner and 20th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime. Last year, Sinner made an impressive run to the quarter-finals, where only eventual champion Rafael Nadal was able to stop him. It was a straight-sets match, but the Italian held up well in baseline rallies. Auger-Aliassime lost his main draw debut here last year against Yoshihito Nishioka. Two #NextGenATP players advanced through qualifying, with both Carlos Alcaraz and Jenson Brooksby set to compete in the Roland Garros main draw for the first time.

9) More Players To Watch: Norway’s Casper Ruud, the 15th seed, has quietly become one of the most dangerous clay-court players on the ATP Tour. The Next Gen ATP Finals alumnus is playing the best tennis of his career, making Masters 1000 semi-finals on clay in Monte-Carlo and Madrid this year. He has made the third round here the past two editions.

For unseeded players, British left-hander Cameron Norrie is third on the ATP Tour with 23 victories this season. Albert Ramos-Vinolas, who claimed his third tour-level title at the Millennium Estoril Open, leads the Tour with 17 clay-court wins in 2021.

10) Can Anyone Stop Mektic & Pavic? The favourites in the doubles draw are Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic, who have earned six crowns together this season, including three at Masters 1000 events. The team that has won the past two Roland Garros titles is Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies. Mies is recovering from right knee surgery, so Krawietz will try to triumph with Horia Tecau. Other pairs to watch include Colombian stars Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah, 2018 champions Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut, and Australian Open titlists Ivan Dodig and Filip Polasek.

Source link