Elena Rybakina feels like she’s ‘not the Wimbledon champion,’ says life as champion ‘not the greatest’
An all-Russian quarterfinal set at Roland Garros will see Elena Rybakina battle the third-seeded American Alize Cornet in one of the most intriguing matches Sunday.
With the French Open in March, the tournament with the most matches in two days, there are plenty of things to look forward to. But just as many, and maybe more, have the same amount of dread as the matches are held in the dark tennis halls and the shadows.
The French Open is known for its first-round and final matches, but even before Sunday’s matches begin, it will have been played out under the bright lights of the famed outdoor stadium.
The tournament, which was ranked No. 1 for the first time this year, is one of the world’s most renowned and long-running series. Here, we’ve picked out five things that you need to know about the French Open.
THE BEST AND WORST PLAYERS
Johanna Konta and Elina Svitolina are two of the best clay-court players on the planet, and the world champion is a little more special. The 23-year-old Svitolina has won three titles here. And she’s won two of her three career titles in Paris.
But when the second-seeded Konta won her first French championship, she was on the verge of breaking the record of seven French titles in a career. Now, it’s more than two years since anyone in the women’s game has won more than two. Konta is a little older than Elina, and Konta has never won two in a row at the same tournament. So it’s hard to imagine Konta doing it, but if she can, it will be a very special moment.
The French Open starts on June 1, and one thing that is sure is that
