It’s actually unimaginable what has occurred in world tennis over the previous two years. The lads’s draw had all the time been the extra steady entity, with the extended dominance of the ‘Large Three’ typically making for pretty predictable outcomes. The WTA draw was the ‘Wild West’, with gamers like Jelena Ostapenko and Emma Radacanu popping out of nowhere to seize Gand Slam titles.
2024 WTA Tour – Grand Slam Tennis
Girls’s French Open Championships
Stade Roland Garros
26 Might – 9 June
However the period of ‘Large Three’ dominance seems to be over in males’s tennis, with new blood dashing in to upend the established order (Sinner, Alcaraz). In distinction, the ladies’s recreation seems to have stabilised, with a reasonably apparent ‘Large Three’ beginning to emerge after years of rating chaos.
Granted, the shorter three-set format in girls’s slams will all the time encourage extra deep runs by outliers. However I can simply envisage the top-four girls qualifying for this yr’s semi-finals. When was the final time you may say that?
Reigning French Open champion Iga Swiatek is a four-time Main champion who might be a large favorite this fortnight. Aryna Sabalenka has nabbed two consecutive Aussie Open titles however can’t fairly crack Swiatek on clay.
Then you’ve gotten Elena Rybakina, reaching finals and successful titles with out a lot fuss or fanfare. Reigning US Open champion Coco Gauff could also be ranked No.3 on the earth however she nonetheless doesn’t have anyplace close to the big-match consistency of the opposite three.
Nonetheless, the American is a previous French Open finalist and this might characterize her probability to start out a ‘Large 4’ dialog.
Previous Champions
- 2023: Iga Swaitek bt Karolina Muchova (6-2, 5-7, 6-4)
- 2022: Iga Swiatek bt Coco Gauff (6-1, 6-3)
- 2021: Barbora Krejcikova bt Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (6-1, 2-6, 6-4)
- 2020: Iga Swiatek bt Sofia Kenin (6-4, 6-1)
- 2019: Ashleigh Barty bt Marketa Vondrousova (6-1, 6-3)
- 2018: Simona Halep bt Sloane Stephens (3-6, 6-4, 6-1)
Clay-court precursors this season
Charleston Open: Danielle Collins bt Daria Kasatkina (7-5, 6-3)
Copa Colsanitas: Camila Osorio bt Marie Bouzkova (6-3, 7-6)
Stuttgart Open: Elena Rybakina bt Marta Kostyuk (6-2, 6-2)
Open de Rouen: Sloane Stephens bt Magda Linette (6-1, 2-6, 6-2)
Madrid Open: Iga Swiatek bt Aryna Sabalenka (7-5, 6-4, 7-6)
Italian Open: Iga Swiatek bt Aryna Sabalenka (6-2, 6-3)
Morocco Open and Internationaux de Strasbourg: in progress
The Large Three
There’s a particular ‘large three’ vying for the Girls’s title this yr, however one stands head and shoulders above the remainder of them and might be trying to bag her fourth French Open title in 5 years.
Iga Swiatek
The true query this week is easy: can anybody cease Iga Swiatek from successful a fourth Roland Garros title? Spoiler Alert: most likely not. I’m not going to take a seat right here like I’ve finished with Nadal prior to now, creating purple herrings that will make Agatha Christie jealous.
Iga Swiatek ought to win this occasion. She has gained right here 3 times within the final 4 years and arrives in scrumptious type, successful back-to-back titles in Madrid and Rome (beating Sabalenka in each finals).
She additionally confirmed she will be able to win two methods, saving match-points in Madrid earlier than obliterating the Belarusian within the Rome remaining. These situations have been simply made for the Pole. She makes use of her athleticism to chase every part down and the topspin she creates on that forehand wing is just too a lot for many to deal with.
Aryna Sabalenka
Now, which of her nice rivals poses the most important risk to her this yr?
I simply merely admire Sabalenka for being on the market after such a traumatic yr. The World No.2 has been on an emotional roller-coaster this yr, going from the excessive of successful her second Grand Slam to the low that was the obvious suicide of her ex-boyfriend on the eve of the Indian Wells Masters.
She actually by no means appeared herself for a while following that incident however she fortunately rediscovered her type on the clay, dropping these back-to-back finals to Swiatek. She should nonetheless be questioning how she let that Madrid title slip away.
She endured heartbreak right here final season, dropping to Muchova within the semis regardless of main 5-2 within the third (with a match-point). That’s some vital scar tissue to beat. I believe the character of that Rome defeat to Swiatek might have a psychological impact on Sabalenka going into the latter levels of this occasion (only a hunch).
Elena Rybakina
That’s why I believe that Elena Rybakina could show extra of a risk to Swiatek in Paris. She has been in ninja mode this season, compiling a 30/5 win-loss file and successful three tournaments with out anybody actually noticing.
There aren’t any histrionics with Rybakina, she simply comes out and does the enterprise. She has improved dramatically on clay during the last two years, successful in Rome final season and choosing up one other title in Stuttgart this yr.
She was ousted within the Madrid semi-finals and can really feel rested after skipping Rome. 1 / 4-finalist right here again in 2021, Rybakina additionally has an intangible concern issue. She doesn’t succumb to nerves in the identical manner as different gamers and her serve may be nearly unplayable if it hums.
Sabakenka has a 6-3 head-to-head benefit over Rybakina however the Kazakh has gained three of their final 5 conferences. She additionally holds a uncommon 4-2 head-to-head benefit over Swiatek. Former Wimbledon champ Rybakina performs with no concern and she will be able to win any event if she finds her vary.
