Over the next two weeks all eyes will be on the developments taking place in the French capital of Paris where the 126th edition of Roland Garros will be taking place.
128 players will be fighting it out for the title which also rewards the singles champion with 1000 ranking points and prize money of €2,200,000. The women’s draw is one full of intrigue with the past six editions of the tournament being won by different players. Iga Swiatek has established herself as the frontrunner but there are others following in close pursuit.
Here’s a look at some of the talking points in the women’s draw this year.
Swiatek’s dominance
Can anybody stop Swiatek? The Pole has enjoyed a sensational past few months which has seen her win 28 matches in a row, claiming five straight titles. Out of those five, four were at WTA 1000 events. To put the run into context, only three other players on the WTA Tour have achieved such a winning streak since 2000 – both of the Williams sisters and Justine Henin.
The 20-year-old is already a strong clay court player having won half of her career titles (4/8) on the surface, including the 2020 French Open. Following her most recent triumph at the Italian Open on Sunday, Swiatek played down the potential pressure she faces of being the title favourite.
“Honestly, I’m going to do the same way I’ve done here (in Rome), also in other tournaments,” she said of her preparations for the French Open. “For sure it’s going to be a little bit harder with all the breaks that we’re going to have between matches. I also like the rhythm that we have on Grand Slams. Again, I’m going to try to do step by step, just think of the next match as I did in these tournaments.”
Out of the past 14 French Open tournaments that have taken place, the top seed has only won the title three times. Serena Williams prevailed in 2013 and 2015, followed by Simona Halep in 2018.
Swiatek’s potential path to French Open title No.2
R128 – Q
R64 – Riske/Yastremska
R32 – Samsonova
R16 – Halep/Ostapenko
QF – Pliskova/Pegula
SF – Badosa/Sabalenka
F – Krejcikova/Sakkari/Jabeur
Is Barbora Krejcikova fit enough?
12 months ago Barbora Krejcikova achieved the unthinkable by winning the French Open at a time when she only had one Tour title to her name and was yet to crack the world’s top 20 in singles. Since then, the Czech has peaked at a high of No.2 in the world with quarter-finals appearances at both the US Open and Australian Open.
However, Krejcikova enters Paris with a huge question mark over her head. Due to a troublesome elbow injury she hasn’t played a Tour match since February 23rd at the Qatar Open.
“Last year was extremely amazing,” the 26-year-old said during the French Open draw on Thursday. “I think the results that I had during that year was something incredible. I’m really happy that it happened but it was something that I didn’t expect.’
“I’m super happy to be back here (in Paris). I’m looking forward to start playing and I hope it will be a good year again.” She added.
The defending champion will be hoping to avoid a first round loss this year. Players to have won a Grand Slam and then lose in the first round 12 months later include Anastasia Myskina, Steffi Graf, Jennifer Capriati, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Angelique Kerber and Jelena Ostapenko.
Krejcikova will start her campaign against France’s Diane Parry.
Top names target Grand Slam breakthrough
Out of the five top seeds in the draw, three of them are yet to play in the final of a major tournament. Paula Badosa, Maria Sakkari and Anett Kontaveit are yet to achieve such a milestone. Out of the trio Greece’s Sakkari has the best record at the majors with runs to the semi-final stage on two occasions, including last year’s French Open. Although she has only played six matches on the clay so far this season, winning just three of them.
Second seed Badosa has only won 15 Grand Slam main draw matches in her career to date with seven of those occurring at Roland Garros. In fact she has won more matches at the tournament than any other major with runs to the fourth round in 2020 followed by the quarter-finals a year later. Out of her three WTA titles, only one was one on clay.
Finally, Kontaveit has only managed to reach the second week at Roland Garros once in six previous attempts. Despite her success on the women’s Tour, she is yet to make a significant breakthrough at the big events and is a more formidable force when it comes to playing on the hard courts.
The past three editions of the French Open have been won by players who entered the draw with no Grand Slam titles to their name.
Emma Raducanu’s French Open debut
Since winning the US Open title last September, Emma Raducanu has endured a rollercoaster journey on the Tour and is yet to reach the final of another tournament. So far in 2022 the Brit has achieved a win-loss of 7-9 and only managed to record back-to-back wins in two out of eight tournaments. Although both of those were at a clay court event (Stuttgart and Madrid).
Part of the reason for the lacklustre results has been down to physical issues. The latest of which is a back problem that forced Raducanu to retire from her first round match against Bianca Andreescu at the Italian Open.
‘That is definitely a journey [where] I’m learning on the way but it’s just what works for me as an individual,” Raducanu recently told the Wall Street Journal when asked about her decision to split with three coaches within a year.
‘It might not work for anyone else and people might look at me like I’m crazy but I trust my own decision-making and my own beliefs of what I think is right for myself.
‘I’m pretty confident in how I’m working and my mindset and outlook towards how I’m approaching my tennis right.’
Raducanu will make her main draw debut at the French Open this year. She has previously played in the junior edition back in 2018 when she lost in the second round to Denmark’s Clara Tauson.
Will Jabeur cause a surprise?
Looking at the performances on the clay this year alone, Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur has to be considered as a strong contender for the title. She has achieved an impressive win-loss record of 17-3 on the surface and recently won 11 matches in a row. Something she had never done in her career before. The 27-year-old has reached the final in three out of her past four tournaments, winning the Madrid Open.
“I enjoy Roland Garros a lot. I have great memories of that Grand Slam. I didn’t think about being the favourite to go there and people expecting me to do things. But it’s for sure a good pressure for me. I hope I will be ready for it,” Jabeur told reporters in Rome last Sunday.
Seeded sixth in this year’s draw, Jabeur could potentially face Petra Kvitova in the third round should the draw go according to rankings. Then she may have to face either Raducanu or Angelique Kerber followed by a last eight clash with Sakkari.
Jabeur won the French Open junior title back in 2011 when she beat Daria Gavrilova, Caroline Garcia and Monica Puig en route to the trophy.
The full French Open draw can be viewed HERE.
