Are Rafael Nadal and Simona Halep the favourites to win the French Open?

Hot on the heels of the rescheduled US Open, the tennis elite take the court once again in the French Open. Here’s a summary of the tournament, and the players to watch.

The French Open will, as ever, be held at the Stade Roland Garros. The Court Suzanne Lenglen, Court Simoone Mathieu and the Court Philippe Chatrier are the big showcourts, and the latter now has a retractable roof, meaning it will see play until late in evening. Rescheduled, it will run from 27 September to 11 October, and see a full programme of singles, doubles, mixed doubles, juniors and wheelchair tournaments all taking place. The prize pot has dropped around 11% due to the virus, but the singles winners will still go home with around €1,600,000.

In the men’s game, Rafael Nadal is the clear favourite. He comes into the tournament having won it 12 times, and is the defending champion this year. Nadal skipped the US Open to focus on preparing for this tournament, and he is particularly good on clay, so the smart money says to expect the Spaniard to storm to victory. However, despite Nadal’s clear favourite status, he lost in straight sets and was eliminated in the quarter-final at the Italian Open, so there are some expectations he may struggle to a potential victory a little more than usual.

If Nadal were to lose this tournament, who could win? With his great rival Roger Federer out on injury leave, there are two big names in the frame – Novak Djokovic and Dominic Thiem. Djokovic has won the French Open once before, and recently achieved an historic 17th Master 1000 final on clay. His form is on-point – excusing his default at the US Open, Djokovic hasn’t lost a match all season, and he claims that Nadal is looking “beatable”.

Thiem is also looking good, with his US Open win potentially lifting the pressure of expectation. Past these three, Stefano Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev round out the predicted male winners.

2018 French Open champion Simona Halep has emerged as the bookies’ favourite

The women’s tournament is somewhat more open. 2018 French Open champion Simona Halep has emerged as the bookies’ favourite – she demonstrated her strong form when she won the recent Italian Open, and is currently on a 14-game winning streak. The odds also favour her as two high-profile names, 2019 champion Ashleigh Barty and this year’s US Open winner Naomi Osaka, have withdrawn, due to concerns about Covid-19 and an injury respectively.

Halep was keen to play down expectations. She said: “It’s just another tournament. I’m not going to put pressure on myself. I’ve played really well this year with three title already. I’ve played so much on clay, so I feel confident and happy that I’ll have a chance to play another Grand Slam this year. I’m not going to let myself be bothered by things like the weather. I’ll just be happy to take positives from this tournament and go there smiling.”

After Halep, bookies suggest that Kiki Bertens and 2016 winner Garbine Muguruza are also potential winners. Marketa Vondrousova had a good run to the Italian Open semi-finals this year and, if the draw favours her, Johann Konta will look to equal and better her semi-final place in the 2019 French Open.

There are some whispers that the tournament could help Serena Williams equal Margaret Court’s all-time record, but it seems unlikely. Although she has won three French Opens, Williams has struggled in France in recent years and her age was clearly counting against her in the US Open last month.

Of course, predictions are just that – before the US Open, I forecasted a Djovokic win, and his disqualification came as a total surprise. But that is the joy of watching live sport, and the 2020 French Open looks to be every bit as exciting as the tournaments of years past.