There is no shortage of storylines as the tennis roadshow arrives at Roland Garros for the French Open.
Rafael Nadal is set to play in the tournament for one final time before he retires later this year, while Andy Murray, playing in Paris for just the second time in seven years, is also not expected to return.
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are two of the favourites but both have had injury issues in the build-up to Roland Garros, while Novak Djokovic, who must at least reach the final to prevent Sinner replacing him as world number one, is yet to produce his best tennis during the clay-court swing.
Alexander Zverev, winner of the Italian Open last week, has reached three straight semi-finals at this tournament, though he has the small matter of a first-round clash with Nadal.
There is no doubting who the favourite is on the women’s side of the draw, as Iga Swiatek bids to win her fourth French Open title and a fifth Grand Slam.
Coco Gauff could prove to be the biggest threat on Swiatek’s route to the final, but the American, like most, has a miserable record against the Polish star.
Aryna Sabalenka has not failed to reach the last-four of a Slam she has played in since the 2022 Australian Open, though she has lost to Swiatek in finals in Madrid and Rome in recent weeks.
Dates and venue
The French Open gets underway on Sunday, May 26, 2024, and runs through to the men’s final a fortnight later, on Sunday June 9.
As ever, it is being played at Roland Garros in Paris.
How to watch the French Open
TV channel:The tournament will be broadcast in full on Eurosport, with a subscription costing £6.99-a-month or £59.99 for an annual pass.
Live stream:Those who have subscribed can stream every match through the discovery+ app and website.
Prize money
Men’s and women’s singles
Champion - €2.4million
Runner-up - €1.2m
Semi-finalist - €650,000
Quarter-finalist - €415,000
Fourth round - €250,000
Third round - €158,000
Second round - €110,000
First round - €73,000
Men’s and women’s doubles (per pair)
Champion - €590,000
Runner-up - €295,000
Semi-finalist - €148,000
Quarter-finalist - €80,000
Third round - €43,500
Second round - €27,500
First round - €17,500
Full singles schedule
Play will begin for the morning sessions at 10am BST, with the action getting underway on Philipe-Chatrier an hour later. The night sessions will begin at 7:15pm.
Sunday, May 26 – men’s and women’s first round
See AlsoEnsuring coastal resilience for the BahamasShōgun’s coming back for season 2, but no one’s quite sure how just yetWyden reintroduces legislation to step up the pace, scope of prescribed burns, reduce risk of catastrophic wildfires - KTVZRapid local adaptation to northern winters in the invasive Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus: A moving targetMonday, May 27 – men’s and women’s first round
Tuesday, May 28 – men’s and women’s first round
Wednesday, May 29 – men’s and women’s second round
Thursday, May 30 – men’s and women’s second round
Friday, May 31 – men’s and women’s third round
Saturday, June 1 – men’s and women’s third round
Sunday, June 2 – men’s and women’s fourth round
Monday, June 3 – men’s and women’s fourth round
Tuesday, June 4 – men’s and women’s quarter-finals
Wednesday, June 5 – men’s and women’s quarter-finals
Thursday, June 6 – women’s semi-finals
Friday, June 7 – men’s semi-finals
Saturday, June 8 - women’s final
Sunday, June 9 - men’s final
British players and notable first-round matches
There are six British singles players in the main draw, with Heather Watson, Billy Harris and Ryan Peniston among those unable to make it through qualifying and add to that tally.
Emma Raducanu will not feature at Roland Garros, after she withdrew from the qualifying event in an attempt “to keep fit for the rest of the year".
Murray, playing in the French Open for what is expected to be the final time, has been handed a tough first-round draw against 2015 champion Stan Wawrinka. It is the third match in a row at Roland Garros that Murray has faced Wawrinka, having lost to him in 2017 and 2020.
Dan Evans, who will play in the doubles in Paris alongside Murray goes up against Holger Rune, while Jack Draper will face Carlos Alcaraz in the second round if both get through their opening matches. Cameron Norrie, if he beats Pavel Kotov, will take on the winner of Murray’s clash with Wawrinka.
Harriet Dart faces the seeded Linda Noskova, and Katie Boulter, who has never won a main-draw match on clay in her career, plays Paula Badosa, a former world number two.
Favourite Swiatek goes up against a qualifier in the opening round and could then face Naomi Osaka, if the four-time Grand Slam winner gets past Lucia Bronzetti.
Notable first-round matches:
Andy Murray vs Stan Wawrinka
Cameron Norrie (32) vs Pavel Kotov
Dan Evans vs Holger Rune (13)
Jack Draper vs Jesper De Jong
Alexander Zverev (4) vs Rafael Nadal
Harriet Dart vs Linda Noskova (27)
Katie Boulter (26) vs Paula Badosa
Qinwen Zheng (7) vs Alize Cornet
Elina Svitolina vs Karolina Pliskova
Lucia Bronzetti vs Naomi Osaka
Seedings
Men’s
1 - Novak Djokovic
2 - Jannik Sinner
3 - Carlos Alcaraz
4 - Alexander Zverev
5 - Daniil Medvedev
6 - Andrey Rublev
7 - Casper Ruud
8 - Hubert Hurkacz
9 - Stefanos Tsitsipas
10 - Grigor Dimitrov
11 - Alex de Minaur
12 - Taylor Fritz
13 - Holger Rune
14 - Tommy Paul
15 - Ben Shelton
16 - Nicolas Jarry
17 - Ugo Humbert
18 - Karen Khachanov
19 - Alexander Bublik
20 - Sebastian Baez
21 - Felix Auger-Aliassime
22 - Adrian Mannarino
23 - Francisco Cerundolo
24 - Alejandro Tabilo
25 - Frances Tiafoe
26 - Tallon Griekspoor
27 - Sebastian Korda
28 - Tomas Martin Etcheverry
29 - Arthur Fils
30 - Lorenzo Musetti
31 - Mariano Navone
32 - Cameron Norrie
Women’s
1 - Iga Swiatek
2 - Aryna Sabalenka
3 - Coco Gauff
4 - Elena Rybakina
5 - Marketa Vondrousova
6 - Maria Sakkari
7 - Qinwen Zheng
8 - Ons Jabeur
9 - Jelena Ostapenko
10 - Daria Kasatkina
11 - Danielle Collins
12 - Jasmine Paolini
13 - Beatriz Haddad Maia
14 - Madison Keys
15 - Elina Svitolina
16 - Ekaterina Alexandrova
17 - Liudmila Samsonova
18 - Marta Kostyuk
19 - Victoria Azarenka
20 - Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
21 - Carolina Garcia
22 - Emma Navarro
23 - Anna Kalinskaya
24 - Barbora Krejcikova
25 - Elise Mertens
26 - Katie Boulter
27 - Linda Noskova
28 - Sorana Cirstea
29 - Veronika Kudermetova
30 - Dayana Yastremska
31 - Leylah Fernandez
32 - Katerina Siniakova
Latest odds for French Open
Men’s Singles:
Carlos Alcaraz 5/2
Novak Djokovic 10/3
Jannik Sinner 9/2
Alexander Zverev 13/2
Women’s Singles:
Iga Swiatek 4/6
Aryna Sabalenka 11/2
Coco Gauff 17/2
Elena Rybakina 10/1
Odds via Betfair. Subject to change.
