Roland Garros Daily Preview: Jannik Sinner Plays Carlos Alcaraz in the Men’s Semifinals - UBITENNIS
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Roland Garros Daily Preview: Jannik Sinner Plays Carlos Alcaraz in the Men’s Semifinals

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Jannik Sinner on Tuesday in Paris (twitter.com/rolandgarros)

The men’s singles semifinals will be played on Friday in Paris, as will semifinals in both men’s and women’s doubles.

The ATP singles semifinals feature three of the four top seeds, and the other player is the only of the four to have reached the championship match at Roland Garros, which he did in both of the last two years.  Which of the four will become a first-time French Open champion on Sunday?

The first singles semifinal of the day is a blockbuster, between the two best male players of the new generation.  Reigning Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner, who will become the new World No.1 on Monday, takes on reigning Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz, who would become the new World No.2 if he wins this title.  Their matches have provided some of the most scintillating tennis of the last few years.  Who will win the ninth chapter of their developing rivalry?

The second semifinal sees Sascha Zverev try to overcome a 1-6 record in Major semifinals, against two-time French Open finalist Casper Ruud, who is 3-0 in Major semifinals.  And it’s a rematch from the same round of this same event a year ago, when Ruud demolished Zverev, dropping just seven games.

Carlos Alcaraz (3) vs. Jannik Sinner (2) – Not Before 2:30pm on Court Philippe-Chatrier

The most notable of their previous matches is their epic US Open quarterfinal from 2022, which lasted over five hours and ended at nearly 3:00am local time.  Alcaraz prevailed 6-3 in the fifth, in a match that featured a mind-boggling level of tennis across all five hours.  Carlitos would go on a few days later to win his first Major, while Jannik would have to wait nearly 18 months to win his.

Overall they have split eight prior encounters at tour level, though Sinner claimed their only meeting on clay.  That was the final of Umag two summers ago, when Jannik came back from a set down to win in three.  In their only matchup of 2024, it was Alcaraz coming from a set down to hand Sinner his first loss of the year, in the Indian Wells semifinals.

That remains one of only two losses for the Italian this season, as he’s now 33-2.  The other was in the semifinals of Monte Carlo, at the hands of Stefanos Tsitsipas.  Despite battling illness and a hip injury prior to this fortnight, Sinner has dropped only one set to this stage. 

Alcaraz has also been struggling with an injury of late, to his right arm.  But that has not seemed to impact his form, as the Spaniard has also only dropped one set.  Carlitos is 23-5 on the year, and 2-2 in Major semifinals, while Jannik is 1-1. 

Since last fall, Sinner has clearly been the best male singles players in the world.  By contrast, Alcaraz has struggled since losing an epic final in Cincinnati last summer to Novak Djokovic, and has only claimed one title since winning Wimbledon nearly a year ago.  However, while Carlitos’ two Major titles have come on a hard court and a grass court, clay is the surface he grew up on, and the one he is most comfortable on.

This feels like a monumental semifinal, and it will likely have Major implications at this tournament and beyond.  With Djokovic and Nadal both already eliminated, the winner of this matchup between the ATP’s two best players will be the favorite in Sunday’s championship match.  And with Djokovic having undergone knee surgery earlier this week, Sinner and Alcaraz will also be the two favorites next month to win Wimbledon.

On Friday, I give the slight edge to Alcaraz.  Sinner is yet to solidify himself as an elite clay court player, as the aforementioned Umag title remains his only one on this surface.  Jannik’s other three victories over Carlitos have come on faster courts (Wimbledon, Miami, Beijing), while Alcaraz has now beaten Sinner in both of the last two years in Indian Wells, which plays at a speed closer to a clay court.  Regardless of the outcome, these two young men seem primed to deliver another classic encounter.

Casper Ruud (7) vs. Sascha Zverev (4) – Last on Court Philippe-Chatrier

It has already been quite a tournament for Zverev, who plays while a trial regarding domestic abuse allegations against him is ongoing in Germany.  He drew 14-time champion Nadal in the first round, impressively defeating the King of Clay in straight sets.  Sascha would go on to win back-to-back five-setters, over Tallon Griekspoor and Holger Rune, before taking out Alex de Minaur in the last round in straight sets. 

Ruud’s road to this semifinal was also quite complicated.  He required four sets to overcome both Tomas Martin Etcheverry and Taylor Fritz, and five against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.  But in the quarterfinals, he received a walkover from an injured Novak Djokovic.  Casper now vies for his third consecutive Roland Garros final, and every time he has advanced beyond the fourth round of a Major, he’s gone all the way to the championship match.

However, we’ve seen in previous years how receiving a walkover in the later round of a Slam often leads to defeat in the next round.  The most relevant example is when Djokovic received a walkover from Italy’s Fabio Fognini in the 2011 Roland Garros quarterfinals.  In the very next round, Roger Federer ended Novak’s perfect season to date, as Djokovic had won his first 43 matches of the year.  Players are creatures of habit, and Ruud having three full days off between matches may disrupt his rhythm.

But perhaps even more troubling is Zverev’s 1-6 record in Major semifinals.  And his only victory came in an empty stadium at the 2020 US Open, when he came from two sets down against a tight Pablo Carreno Busta.  Of course it was in the semifinals of this event two years ago when Sascha suffered a gruesome ankle injury that ended his season.  And a year ago, Ruud defeated Zverev in this round by a score of 6-3, 6-4, 6-0.

Overall they have split four previous meetings, with the other three occurring on hard courts.  But a year after their last matchup at this same tournament, Sascha is a much stronger player.  12 months ago, he had not fully rediscovered his form coming off the ankle injury. 

Both men achieved good results on clay coming into this fortnight: Ruud advanced to the final of Monte Carlo and won Barcelona, while Zverev won Rome, and is currently on an 11-match winning streak.  In another tough semifinal to call, I lean towards Zverev to extend his winning streak on Friday.  He feels due for a semifinal victory at a Major, and Sascha is currently playing with more confidence than he’s possessed in a few years.  And in what will likely be a close contest, Zverev’s serving prowess may be the difference, along with his tremendous record of 23-2 in tiebreakers at Roland Garros.

Other Notable Matches on Friday:

Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos (1) vs. Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic (9) – Granollers and Zeballos are looking to reach their fourth Major final, though they’re yet to win one.  Arevalo won this event in men’s doubles two years ago alongside France’s Jean-Julien Rojer, while Pavic is a three-time Major champion in men’s doubles, with three different partners.  This is a rematch from the final in Rome a few weeks ago, where Granollers and Zeballos prevailed 6-2, 6-2.  The winners will face Italy’s Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori in the championship match on Saturday.

Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini (11) vs. Marta Kostyuk and Elena-Gabriela Ruse – Paolini is looking to match what Errani did here in 2012: advance to the final in both women’s singles and women’s doubles.  That year, Errani was the runner-up in singles, and a champion in doubles.  Kostyuk and Ruse were also semifinalists at the last Major in Melbourne.

Caroline Dolehide and Desirae Krawczyk (8) vs. Coco Gauff and Katerina Siniakova (5) – Gauff will look to bounce back from another disappointing loss to Iga Swiatek on Thursday.  This is the third consecutive year Coco has reached the semifinals or better at Roland Garros in women’s doubles.  Siniakova won this event twice alongside Barbora Krejickova.  Dolehide is 0-4 in Major semis in this discipline, while Krawczyk was a runner-up here in 2020.

Friday’s full Order of Play is here.

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Paris Olympics Daily Preview: Osaka Plays Kerber, Nadal Teams with Alcaraz

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12 hours ago

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26/07/2024

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Naomi Osaka practicing this week in Paris (twitter.com/ITFTennis)

Olympic tennis gets underway on Saturday in Paris, on the grounds of Roland Garros.

While not traditionally thought of as an Olympic sport, the tennis event at the last several Summer Olympic Games has provided some of the sport’s most memorable and emotional moments.  Representing their country at the Olympics is one of the biggest achievements in the lives of many tennis players, and the 2024 event being staged at Roland Garros is unquestionably a very special one.

This will be the last tournament in the careers of a pair of three-time Major champions: Andy Murray and Angelique Kerber.  And this will be the last Olympics, and likely the last time playing at Roland Garros, for 14-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal.  Rafa’s status for singles is in doubt, but he is committed to playing men’s doubles alongside four-time Major champ Carlos Alcaraz.

Nadal and Alcaraz will play their opening round doubles match on Saturday evening, while Kerber faces fellow multi-time Major champ Naomi Osaka in a blockbuster first round contest to close out the night session.  The day session sees both of the top seeds in the singles draws, Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek, play their opening round matches.

The draws for men’s singles, women’s singles, men’s doubles, women’s doubles, and mixed doubles will all be played across the next nine days in Paris.

Throughout the tournament, this preview will analyze the day’s most prominent matches, while highlighting the other notable matches on the schedule.  Saturday’s play begins at 12:00pm local time.

  • Alcaraz and Nadal practicing this week (twitter.com/ITFTennis

Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni [ARG] (6) vs. Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal [ESP] – 7:00pm on Court Philippe-Chatrier

Eight years ago, Nadal won the gold medal in men’s singles at the Rio Olympics, alongside Marc Lopez.  And eight years before that, he claimed the gold medal in men’s singles at the Beijing Olympics, notably defeating Novak Djokovic in the semifinals.  Now he goes for a third gold medal, teaming with the reigning Roland Garros and Wimbledon men’s singles champion.

But this is a physically compromised, 38-year-old version of Rafa, who has only played six events within the last 18 months.  And while he reached the final just last week in Bastad, that run apparently took a toll on his body.  There are reports he may be pulling out of the singles draw in Paris, as a four-hour quarterfinal match last week against Mariano Navone certainly drained the King of Clay. 

This will be the first time these two Spanish all-time greats team up, and both have rarely played doubles in their careers.  By contrast, Gonzalez and Molteni are both top 20 doubles players.  And while they didn’t team together during the grass court season, they’ve won seven titles together within the last 18 months.

However, facing these two Roland Garros champions on Court Philippe-Chatrier will be a daunting task.  And Nadal should be less hampered on the doubles court than the singles court.  I expect Rafa and Carlitos to embrace the energy of the Saturday night crowd in Paris, and advance to the next round.

Naomi Osaka [JPN] vs. Angelique Kerber [GER] – Last on Court Philippe-Chatrier

Both of these players returned from maternity at the start of the year, though neither has yet rediscovered their top form.  26-year-old Osaka has shown glimpses of it, specifically two months ago at this same venue, when she was just a point away from upsetting Iga Swiatek.  36-year-old Kerber is just 7-14 since returning, and arrives in Paris on a five-match losing streak.  Angie announced earlier this week that she will retire from the sport following these Olympic Games.

These two sure-fire Hall of Famers played six times between 2017 and 2022, with Kerber taking four of those six encounters.  However, most of those occurred while Angie was at her best, and before Naomi had reached her top level.  They’ve never before played on clay, which is certainly neither’s favorite surface.

In the last tournament of her career, Kerber will be extra motivated to achieve a good result.  And she’s done so before at the Olympics, as she was the silver medalist back in 2016.  At the last Olympics in Tokyo, Osaka seemed distracted and overwhelmed playing in her home country’s Games.  But this season, she’s been extremely focused on her tennis, and has dedicated herself to better acclimating to playing on clay.  Based on her performance in Paris two months ago, I like Naomi’s chances of prevailing on Saturday, and thus ending Angie’s singles career.

  • Swiatek practicing this week (twitter.com/ITFTennis)

Other Notable Matches on Saturday:

Iga Swiatek [POL] (1) vs. Irina-Camelia Begu [ROU] – Swiatek is 21-1 this year on clay, and is on a 19-match win streak on this surface.  Three years ago at Wimbledon, she thumped Begu by a score of 6-1, 6-0.

Jack Draper [GBR] vs. Kei Nishikori [JPN] – Nishikori was a bronze medalist at the Rio Olympics, but injuries have only allowed him to play four ATP events across the last three seasons.  Draper currently sits at a career-high ranking of No.26, thanks to 21 match wins in 2024.

Novak Djokovic [SRB[ (1) vs. Matthew Ebden [AUS] – An Olympic gold medal is the one glaring blemish on the Djokovic CV, and at 37 years of age, this will most certainly be his last good chance to win the gold for Serbia, which might mean more to Novak than any of his other career accomplishments.  Ebden replaces Andy Murray in the singles draw, and the Australian hasn’t played a singles match in over two years, as the ITF bizarrely uses doubles players already on site as singles alternates.

Hady Habib [LBN] vs. Carlos Alcaraz [ESP] (2) – Alcaraz will play both singles and doubles on Saturday, and he’s now 33-6 on the year in singles, coming off his fourth Major title at Wimbledon.  Habib is a 25-year-old representing Lebanon who has never been ranked inside the world’s top 250.

Rinky Hijikata [AUS] vs. Daniil Medvedev [AIN] (4) – Three years ago at the Tokyo Olympics, Medvedev lost in the quarterfinals to eventual bronze medalist Pablo Carreno Busta.  Hijikata peaked at No.70 in singles last season, but is just 10-16 in 2024.

Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula [USA] (1) vs. Ellen Perez and Daria Saville [AUS] – Gauff will be the flag bearer for the United States during Friday’s opening ceremony, after missing the Tokyo Games due to COVID.  Her and Pegula are regular partners, while Perez and Saville are not, though Perez is a top 10 doubles player.

Saturday’s full Order of Play is here.

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Matteo Berrettini extends his winning streak to eight consecutive matches to reach the semifinal in Kitzbuehl

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19 hours ago

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26/07/2024

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Matteo Berrettini beat world number 143 Nicolas Moreno De Alboran 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 in their first head-to-head match to reach the semifinal at the Generali Open in Kitzbuhel. Berrettini has extended his winning streak to eight consecutive matches. 

Berrettini hit seven aces, dropped just five points on his first serve and saved all three break points. 

Berrettini, who was outside the top 150 last March, returned to the top 50 after claiming his ninth career title in Gstaad.

The first three games featured a total of three break points. Both players went on serve en route to the tie-break. De Alboran earned the first mini-break to take a 4-3 lead, but Berrettini won four consecutive points from 3-5 down to claim the tie-break 7-5. Berrettini improved to 9-0 in tie-breaks during the past two tournaments. 

The second set went on serve until the eighth game when Berrettini earned his decisive break to take a 5-3 lead. The 2021 Wimbledon finalist sealed the win on his first match point after a double fault from De Alboran. 

Berrettini set up a semifinal match against Yannik Hanfmann, who beat Thago Seyboth Wild 7-6 (7-2) 6-4. 

“I am really happy with the performance, I have never played against him so I did not really what to expect. It was a really high level of tennis and I think he was playing and serving really well, hitting the forehand really well, so I had to dig deep with my energy and my level”, said Berrettini.

Hugo Gaston battled past Sebastian Baez 7-5 5-7 7-6 (8-6) in 3 hours and 8 minutes. Gaston saved two match point as he won the last four points of the tie-break in the third set. The Frenchman fended off 12 of the 16 break points.

Gaston set up a semifinal clash against Pedro Martinez, who came back from one set down to beat Pedro Martinez 6-7 (2-7) 6-3 6-4 in 3 hours and 32 minutes.   

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Novak Djokovic’s Potential Second Round Clash With Rafael Nadal Headlines Olympics Draw

Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic could meet in the second round of the Olympics.

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2 days ago

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25/07/2024

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(@TheTennisLetter - Twitter)

Novak Djokovic’s potential second round clash with Rafael Nadal headlines an exciting Olympics draw.

The draw was done this morning for the Olympic Games which will take place at Roland Garros.

After Andy Murray’s late withdrawal from the singles event, the next big headline would take place in the men’s singles draw as Novak Djokovic could collide with Rafael Nadal in the second round.

It would be a titanic tussle between two of the best players of all time but first Djokovic will have to get past doubles specialist Matthew Ebden while Nadal takes on Hungarian Marton Fucsovics in the opening round.

Djokovic is the top seed after Jannik Sinner’s withdrawal and could play Hamburg champion Arthur Fils in the third round before a potential quarter-final clash with Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Meanwhile as for Carlos Alcaraz the Spaniard will begin against Hady Habib in the opening round and could face Cameron Norrie in the second round with the Brit facing Tallon Griekspoor in his opener.

Other key obstacles in his half of the draw are Rome finalist Alejandro Tabilo, Alex De Minaur and Casper Ruud.

Here are some of the other key matches in the men’s singles draw in the first round:

Lorenzo Musetti v Gael Monfils

Jack Draper v Kei Nishikori

Alexander Bublik v Taylor Fritz

Alex De Minaur v Jan-Lennard Struff

Kerber and Osaka first round clash headlines Women’s Singles Draw

In the Women’s singles draw the headline clash will see Naomi Osaka take on Angelique Kerber in a battle of the Grand Slam champions.

Kerber has announced this morning that this will be her final tournament of her career before retiring.

The winner of that match could take on Elena Rybakina in the second round with the Kazakh beginning her campaign against Jaqueline Cristian.

Rybakina has landed in Iga Swiatek’s half of the draw with the world number one beginning against Irina-Camelia Begu with the in-form Diana Schnaider awaiting in the third round.

In the bottom half of the draw, Coco Gauff will begin her campaign against Ajla Tomljanovic with Wimbledon semi-finalist Donna Vekic awaiting in the third round.

Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova will face Sara Sorribes Tormo with Jessica Pegula awaiting in the third round.

Stefanos Tsitsipas, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray headline doubles draw

In the doubles draws, Andy Murray will compete in his last ever tournament as he and Dan Evans are drawn against Taro Daniel and Kei Nishikori in the first round.

The dream duo of Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal face sixth seeds Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni.

Meanwhile the Tsitsipas brothers face Nuno Borges and Francisco Cabral while Daniil Medvedev and Roman Safiullin face second seeds Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz.

The headline match of the men’s doubles is Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul facing Felix Auger-Aliassime and Milos Raonic.

On the women’s side top seeds Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula take on Ellen Perez and Daria Saville.

Also featuring in the draw are Caroline Garcia, Angelique Kerber, Barbora Krejcikova and Maria Sakkari.

The events start on Saturday and will conclude a week later.

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