The tennis world has taken sharp twists and turns in the last couple of months. Iga Swiatek has become an indomitable force in the women’s circuit as the Pole has won two WTA 1000 titles: the Madrid Open and the Italian Open, in the last three weeks. At the young age of 22, Swiatek has already tied the records of Simona Halep and Victoria Azarenka and she’s showing no signs of stopping.
Meanwhile, Rafael Nadal made his comeback to the tour after a prolonged hiatus at the 2024 Barcelona Open, where he suffered a loss against Australia’s Alex de Minaur in the second round. He later played at the Red Dirt in Madrid and Rome; however, he has suffered three losses in eight matches since his return. Still, the King of Clay is set to contest for his last Roland Garros title.
Two-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz has been suffering from a forearm injury while Jannik Sinner sustained a hip issue, which sidelined the Italian from playing in Rome. Novak Djokovic was also eliminated in the third round of the Italian Open after a metal water bottle struck him on his head. The Serb later revealed that he’ll undergo multiple tests for the fall.
Nevertheless, it’s time for the tennis stars to gear up for the second Grand Slam of the year, the French Open. The clay court Major is also known as the Internationaux de France de Tennis and Roland Garros. The tournament was founded in 1891.
The most successful player in the history of the French Open has been Nadal who is also known as the ‘King of Clay’ for his unparalleled prowess on the red dirt and has won the tournament 14 times with an astounding win-loss record of 112-3. The Spaniard won his first French Open title in 2005 after he stunned Mariano Puerta in the final.
From 2006 to 2008, he defeated Roger Federer in the championship final for three consecutive years. Nadal’s first loss in the tournament came against Sweden’s Robin Söderling in 2009. Nevertheless, the King of Clay has been suffering from several fitness concerns and the upcoming edition is expected to be his last campaign.
Dates
The qualifying draws for the 2024 edition of the French Open will commence on May 20 while the main draw is scheduled to start from May 26. The qualifiers, protected rankings (PR) and wildcards (WR) will compete in the round of 128 before they face seeded players in the round of 64.
The likes of singles, doubles, mixed doubles, junior and wheelchair events will be taking place in the tournament as the finals will be played on 8 and 9 June. With the conclusion of Roland Garros, the clay season of 2024 will also come to an end.
Venue
The 2024 French Open will take place at Stade Roland Garros, located in Paris. The stadium has 24 clay courts, with the Court Philippe Chatrier and the Court Suzanne Lenglen being the largest ones. Court Philippe Chatrier has a seating capacity of 15,225 spectators. Meanwhile, Court Suzanne Lenglen is the secondary stadium with a capacity of 10,068 spectators.
The French Open is the fourth-oldest tournament in tennis history
The governing body of French tennis, Fédération française de tennis, also has its headquarters located in Stade Roland Garros. Additionally, French tennis teams also play their Fed Cup and Davis Cup matches at the same stadium.
Format explainer
The French Open is played in five traditional categories, namely, Men Singles, Women’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles, and Mixed Doubles. In every category, seeded players get a bye. Apart from the 32 seeds, the high-ranked players, wildcards, and protected rankings also get a spot in the main draw.
After the qualifying draw, the tournament’s main draw starts with the Round of 128 and goes all the way down to the final in a knockout format. The total prize money of the 2024 French Open is €53.5 million, more than 7.8 per cent compared to 2023, which was €49.6 million.
Prize money:
| Singles | Doubles | |
| Round of 128 | €73,000 | – |
| Round of 64 | €110,000 | €17,500 |
| Round of 32 | €158,000 | €27,500 |
| Round of 16 | €250,000 | €43,500 |
| Quarter-final | €415,000 | €80,000 |
| Semi-final | €650,000 | €148,000 |
| Final | €1,200,000 | €295,000 |
| Winner | €2,400,000 | €590,000 |
Points distribution:
| Men’s Singles | Women’s Singles | Men’s Doubles | Women’s Doubles | |
| Round of 128 | 10 | 10 | – | – |
| Round of 64 | 50 | 70 | 0 | 10 |
| Round of 32 | 100 | 130 | 90 | 130 |
| Round of 16 | 200 | 240 | 180 | 240 |
| Quarter-final | 400 | 430 | 360 | 430 |
| Semi-final | 800 | 780 | 720 | 780 |
| Final | 1300 | 1300 | 1200 | 1300 |
| Winner | 2000 | 2000 | 2000 | 2000 |
Star Attractions
Defending champion Djokovic has been seeded first, followed by the 2024 Australian Open Champion Sinner as second and Alcaraz in the third spot. Interestingly, Djokovic is yet to win a title this season as he was eliminated in the third round of the Italian Open by Alejandro Tabilo.
Most importantly, Nadal will be making his comeback at the Roland Garros after missing the whole clay season due to a hip injury last year. Additionally, Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zevrav, Andrey Rublev, Casper Ruud, and Stefanos Tsitsipas would be looking forward to winning their first title in the French capital.
Iga Swiatek will be looking forward to winning the French Open for the third consecutive time
Meanwhile, Swiatek is the top seed in the women’s singles, followed by her arch-rival Aryna Sabalenka as second. Swiatek has faced Sabalenka in the finals of the Madrid Open and the Italian Open, winning both. The Pole is currently in red-hot form and is also the favourite to win her fourth Roland Garros title. Apart from the two, Elena Rybakina, Coco Gauff, Danielle Collins, Madison Keys and more will also be eying French Open glory.
On the Indian front, the likes of Sumit Nagal, Rohan Bopanna, and Yuki Bhambri will be in action at Stade Roland Garros in men’s singles and doubles events.