Rafael Nadal gets warm tribute at Roland Garros

 

                                             (Credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images) 

On Sunday, 14-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal got a warm tribute at Roland Garros that involved his contemporaries Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray joining him on the clay. The ceremony took place on Court Philippe-Chatrier, where a plaque was unveiled on the court with his footprint and number of French Open titles engraved on it. 

(Credit: RafaelNadalFans.com) 

While Nadal was a great all-around player, winning 22 grand slams and winning each grand slam (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open) at least twice, it was the French Open that he dominated like nobody else (man or woman). I know records are meant to be broken, but there is a very live possibility that Nadal's 14 French Open titles stands the test of time. Not just in terms of being the most French Open titles, but the most titles that anyone has at any of the other grand slams. 

Between his first French Open title in 2005 and his final French Open title in 2022, there were just four years in those 18 years that Nadal didn't win it. He had a winning percentage of 77.8%. Not a match winning percentage. A tournament winning percentage. His match record was 112-4, which is good for a 96.6% winning percentage. That is nuts. 

Given that ridiculous level of dominance, it is only fitting that Roland Garros gave him such an amazing tribute. He legitimately is a talent on the clay that Paris and the world may never see again. When you have people like that in your midst, you need to do all you can to give them their due and honor them. Words honestly cannot fully express just how amazing Nadal's dominance at Roland Garros was. It's other worldly. 

While the tennis world and especially Roland Garros will miss watching Nadal play, it's comforting to know that his footprint and 14 titles is forever etched into the dirt that he played so gracefully on. Nadal may not go down in history as the greatest all-around tennis player, but one thing is indisputable: He's the King of Clay and forever will be. 

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10 things to look for at the 2025 French Open

 

 

The French Open at Roland Garros in Paris is set to begin this upcoming week, which means it is time for me to write my 10 things to look for. Click here for the draws in case you haven't gotten a chance to look at that and do feel free to scroll through the blog for some recent content that is French Open related. Okay, let's dive in! 

#1. Can Jannik Sinner build on his Italian Open success? While he came up short in the final to Carlos Alcaraz, world number one Jannik Sinner did reach his first career final at the Italian Open earlier this month. That should give Sinner a lot of confidence as he is set to begin his quest for a French Open title. If Sinner does win the French Open, I think we'll be able to look back on his performance in Rome as a catalyst. 

#2. Can Coco Gauff go the distance for the first time? Coco Gauff comes in as the number two seed in the women's draw and has been knocking on the door at Roland Garros. She reached the final back in 2022 and reached the semifinals last year. Earlier this month, she reached the final of the Italian Open, so she's continuing to be a major threat on the dirt. At some point, she'll win a French Open. It's just matter of her having that breakthrough tourney. Will this be the year? That's the question. 

#3. Can Carlos Alcaraz defend his title? Carlos Alcaraz comes in as the number two seed and defending champion on the men's side. He won the Monte-Carlo Masters and Italian Open, so he's coming into Roland Garros with a ton of momentum. He's the favorite to win the French Open, but this time he has to deal with the pressure that comes with being the defending champion. It'll be fun to see how he handles that extra pressure. 

#4. Can Iga Świątek overcome her seed to defend her crown? Iga Świątek comes in as the number five seed in the tournament while also having won three straight French Opens and four overall. If you look at her success at Roland Garros, Swiatek is the clear favorite. When you look at her seed and consider the fact that she lost in the 3rd round at the Italian Open, there is room for some doubt. Personally, I think she'll be motivated to prove that she's still the best clay court player in the world. The fact that she'll have a bit of a chip on her shoulder could make her even more dangerous. 

#5. Can Aryna Sabalenka win a grand slam away from the hard courts? Aryna Sabalenka comes in as the number one seed and top player in the world on the women's side. However, she's never won a French Open or Wimbledon. The furthest she's gone at the French Open is the semifinals in 2023. At some point, she needs to prove she can win a grand slam on other surfaces after being a dominant force on the hard courts. She did win the Madrid Open on clay earlier this year, so that should give her some confidence to have her breakthrough moment at Roland Garros. 

#6. Can Novak Djokovic pull a rabbit out of his hat? Even though he's the number six seed, Novak Djokovic had a rough clay season, losing in the second round in both Madrid and Monte-Carlo while skipping Rome. If Djokovic is able to reach the semifinals, that would be phenomenal given his recent results. I wouldn't bet on it, but at the same time, you can never count the Joker out. He's always a threat. 

#7. Can Jasmine Paolini build on her Italian Open title to win Roland Garros? Jasmine Paolini comes in as the number four seed, fresh off a title at the Italian Open. Paolini reached the final at Roland Garros last year and should be feeling confident in her ability to go the distance this year. She's got a lot of momentum and is playing excellent tennis at the moment. 

#8. Can Alexander Zverev make a serious run? Alexander Zverev comes in as the number three seed and reached the final last year. However, he went out in the second round at Monte-Carlo, the fourth round at Madrid, and the quarterfinals at the Italian Open. I guess he's making progress and picking up a bit of steam, so maybe he'll make some more noise than I think. It certainly will be interesting to see how he does after having a lukewarm clay season coming in. 

#9. Can Jessica Pegula make some noise? Jessica Pegula comes in as the number three seed, so on paper she should be a favorite to reach the semifinals. That being said, she only has one quarterfinal appearance at Roland Garros back in 2022 and she didn't play Roland Garros last year. I'd say odds are well above 50% that she exits in somewhere between the first and fourth round, especially after she had back-to-back third round exits in Madrid and Rome (Italian Open). But hey, maybe she'll surprise me. 

#10. What will happen to Casper Ruud? Casper Ruud comes in as the number seven seed with clay results kind of all over the map. He reached the semifinals at Roland Garros last year and then this year, he lost in the 3rd round at Monte-Carlo, lost in the quarterfinals in Rome, and then won it all in Madrid. I could buy any number of results from Ruud at this year's French Open. I'll be very interested to see where the chips fall for him. 

Prediction: On the men's side, I got Carlos Alcaraz going the distance. He's playing the best clay tennis of anyone and comes in with a lot of momentum having won the Italian Open and Monte-Carlo Masters. I fully expect him to defend his title. As for the women's side, even though she's had a down clay court season and is seeded where she is, I still gotta pick Iga Swiatek to pull through and defend her crown. She's been the best clay player in the women's game these past few years and deserves to be treated as the favorite given her overall body of work. 

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Which Italian Open champion is more likely to win at Roland Garros: Carlos Alcaraz or Jasmine Paolini?

 

                                             (Credit: sportsdigest.in) 

In Rome, (3) Carlos Alcaraz defeated (1) Jannik Sinner 7-6, 6-1 to win the men's singles title at the Italian Open while (6) Jasmine Paolini defeated (4) Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-2 to win the women's singles title. Recently, I did a blog post breaking down the success rate of Italian Open champions at the French Open at Roland Garros. Click here to check that out in case you missed it. 

With that blog post in mind, I'll now address which Italian Open champion is more likely to win at Roland Garros: Carlos Alcaraz or Jasmine Paolini. Both had fantastic performances in Rome while also having a tall task in front of them to follow up a title in Rome with a title in Paris. 

To start the debate, let me first state that Alcaraz and Paolini each had strong performances at Roland Garros last year. Alcaraz won his first French Open title defeating Alexander Zverev 6-3, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 while Paolini reached the final, losing to Iga Swiatek 6-2, 6-1. Both players should be feeling confident going into Roland Garros with an Italian Open championship in hand while also having the performances they did a year ago. 

That said, Alcaraz is ranked higher than Paolini and he is the defending champion while Paolini came up a tad short last year. Not only did she come up short, but she did so against Iga Swiatek, who has won four French Open titles and three French Open titles in a row (2022-24). Swiatek is the top clay player in the women's game right now and you know she'll be hungry to bounce back from her 3rd round exit at Rome and defend her Roland Garros title. 

Another factor to consider is the Italian Open is Alcaraz' second 1000 masters title on clay this season while it's the only one for Paolini. At the Madrid Open, Paolini lost in the 3rd round while Alcaraz won the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters. Alcaraz has shown more consistency during this clay season while Paolini had a less than stellar performance in Madrid. 

Overall, I think if you have to pick between the two, Carlos Alcaraz is more likely to win the French Open this year than Jasmine Paolini. He's had an even stronger clay court season and I think on paper is the favorite whereas I think despite her performance at Rome, Iga Swiatek is still the favorite on the women's side. This of course doesn't mean Paolini isn't a major threat to win it all in Paris. She'll be coming in with a lot of momentum and confidence and then hey, while she didn't win it all last year, she did reach the final. Outside of Swiatek, Paolini is arguably your favorite. It's just that on the men's side, Alcaraz is the favorite. It certainly will be interesting to see how both do at the French Open and whether or not they'll be able to back up their titles in Rome with a title in Paris. 

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Will meeting Pope Leo XIV be a blessing to Jannik Sinner?

 

                                             (Credit: Vatican Media) 

Earlier this week, the same day that I was in Rome touring the Vatican with my family, world number one Jannik Sinner met with newly elected Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican. The Pope apparently is a big tennis fan and given that Sinner is an Italian playing in the Italian Open this week, it made sense for the two of them to meet. 

Sinner is currently still alive in the Italian Open, playing in the semifinals on Friday against No. 12 Tommy Paul. If he wins the Italian Open, one will have to wonder if meeting the Pope gave Sinner a bit of an emotional boost. Of course, Sinner came in as the favorite anyways. Both due to being number one and also being the hometown favorite. In truth, winning the Italian Open may not be much of an indicator of the Holy Father blessing his tennis skills. 

However, winning the Italian Open and French Open back-to-back is no easy task and Sinner is still in search of his first title at both events. The furthest he's gone at the Italian Open is the semifinals (this year) and the furthest he's gone at the French Open is the semifinals (2024). If Sinner were to win both this year for the first time, especially after meeting the Pope, one will have to wonder if something divine is at work. 

Regardless of how the Italian Open and French Open go for Sinner, it's pretty cool he got to meet the Pope. Meeting the Pope just goes to show how big of a deal he is as the only Italian to be ranked number one in the world in tennis. I guess if you have that accomplishment under your belt, it'll be pretty easy to get a VIP trip to the Vatican. Even if your last name is "Sinner." 

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How often does success in Rome lead to success in Paris?

                                               (Credit: internazionalibnlditalia.com) 

This week is the Internazionali BNL D'Italia a.k.a. Italian Open in Rome, Italy. Played on clay, it's the final ATP 1000 & WTA 1000 event before the French Open at Roland Garros in Paris, France. To check out the tournament website, click here. 

Since I am currently traveling in Italy, I thought it would be fun to take a look at how often success in Rome leads to success in Paris. I.e. How often does winning the Italian Open translate to winning the French Open? To keep things somewhat current/modern, I'll focus on the years 1990 to the present day. 

Starting with the men's side, the following players have won both the Italian Open and French Open in the same season since 1990: Jim Courier (1992), Thomas Muster (1995), Rafael Nadal (2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2018, & 2019). 

As for men who at least reached the French Open final after at least reaching the Italian Open final since 1990, we can add the following to the list already posted: Jim Courier (1993 won Italian; lost French), Gustavo Kuerton (2000 & 2001 lost Italian; won French), Roger Federer (2006 lost Italian; lost French), Novak Djokovic (2012 lost Italian; lost French), Novak Djokovic (2014, 2015, & 2020 won Italian; lost French), Novak Djokovic (2016 & 2021 lost Italian; won French), Andy Murray (2016 won Italian; lost French), and Alexander Zverev (2024 won Italian; lost French). 

Switching gears to the women's side, the following players have won both the Italian Open and French Open in the same season since 1990: Monica Seles (1990), Serena Williams (2002 & 2013), Maria Sharapova (2012), and Iga Swiatek (2022 & 2024). 

As for women who at least reached the French Open final after at least reaching the Italian Open since 1990, we can add the following to the list already posted: Monica Seles (1991& 1992 lost Italian; won French), Kim Clijsters (2003 won Italian; lost French), Svetlana Kuznetsova (2009 lost Italian; won French), Serena Williams (2016 won Italian; lost French), Simona Halep (2017 lost Italian; lost French), and Simona Halep (2018 lost Italian; won French). 

One other crazy stat I wanted to point out is Conchita Martinez won the Italian Open from 1993-96. Not once did she reach the French Open final during those years. Her lone trip to the final at Roland Garros wouldn't come until 2000 where she lost to Mary Pierce 6-2, 7-5. Ironically, the only grand slam Martinez won was Wimbledon in 1994. Given Martinez got ranked as high as No. 2 in the world during that four year stretch, you would think she would have won at least French Open, let alone reach a French Open final. 

Looking at all of this big-picture, there's a decent amount of seasons where players have won both the Italian Open and French Open in the same year since 1990: 10 on the men's side and six on the women's side. However, the number of players who have done it is much lower since Nadal did it eight times alone. Only three men have done it and only four women have done it. However, there is a solid amount who have at least reached the final in both. 

I think it's safe to say that while it is far from a guarantee that winning the Italian Open will lead to winning the French Open in the same season, it's still a good thing to have a strong performance in Rome. If you perform well there, you'll come to Paris with a lot of momentum and confidence. It'll certainly be interesting to see how this week goes in Rome and whether or not this year's champions will be able to add their name to the list of players who have won both the Italian Open and French Open in the same season. 

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