French Open: Who will win the men’s singles Grand Slam title at Roland-Garros after Janic Siner’s shock defeat? | tennis news

Janic Ciner’s loss to Juan Manuel Cerundolo in the second round of the French Open left the tennis world in mourning.

The world number one was the favorite to enter a Grand Slam in the men’s singles draw since Rafael Nadal at the 2009 French Open. Coincidentally, Nadal also failed to win at Roland-Garros that year.

The omission of the Sinners means the men’s draw is now wide open, so who are the favorites to be crowned champions next Sunday? A first-time major winner, or perhaps history for a certain Serb?

Alexander Zverev

Rank: 3, Age: 29

Alexander Zverev is almost the man when it comes to Grand Slams, having appeared in three career major finals over the past six years. He should have won the first of those – the 2020 US Open – as he was two sets up and also served for the championship, only to lose to Dominic Thiem.

The German came back from a serious right-ankle injury and tore three collateral ligaments in the 2022 French Open semifinals.

But his return to form has coincided with the rise of Sinar and Carlos Alcaraz over the past three years. With Alcaraz injured and Ciner out, Zverev is now the favorite because his big serve and consistent hard groundstrokes have matched him well on clay throughout his career.

Four of Zverev’s seven Masters 1000 titles have come on clay but the big question is can he handle the pressure of his new favorite status for the rest of the tournament?

Novak Djokovic

Rank: 4, Age: 39

Novak Djokovic is tied for 24 Grand Slam titles through September 2023 and one more major would see him surpass Margaret Court for the most wins by a man or woman of all time.

Djokovic’s full focus is on the Grand Slams as he approaches the end of his illustrious career, having played just four matches outside the majors this season.

In fact, he only played one match coming into the French Open and that was a surprise loss to Dino Prismic at the Italian Open two weeks ago.

As he often does, Djokovic can play his way through two weeks of Grand Slams, although he showed that at the Australian Open earlier this year when he reached the final – defeating Ciner in an epic semi-final clash.

Under pressure, he is still the best player on tour, but, at 39, it is his physicality that is the big question mark. Another problem is that Zverev, among others we’ll get to, has stood in Djokovic’s way before reaching this year’s French Open final.

Happy Auger – also

Rank: 6, Age: 25

Felix Auger-Aliassime has yet to live up to the great potential his career heralded but he is one of only a few standout names in the top half, so can he reach his first Grand Slam final?

Auger-Aliasime likes hard surfaces but usually doesn’t make his life easier coming through earlier rounds and therefore doesn’t have enough left for the later stages of the tournament.

The Canadian proved that once again this week with a gutsy fifth-set tie-break win over Daniel Altmaier in the first round, before dropping another set in the second round.

He must feel a great opportunity to go as far as his side of the draw has been exposed without Sinner, but Auger-Aliassime must have a few easy wins under his belt.

Alex de Minaur

Rank: 7, Age: 27

Alex de Minaur has played in seven Grand Slam quarterfinals, but lost all of them. Clay is not his best surface and he struggled until the week before the French Open when he went to Hamburg for the ATP 250 event and played in the semifinals.

De Minaur enjoyed a walkover in the second round but was played in the next match by Jakub Mencic who was floored in a fifth-set tie-break to win his brutal last-64 match.

This means De Minaur could be a relatively comfortable match and enter the second week reasonably fresh, which could make a big difference.

The Australian is in that tough bottom half but his potential physical advantage, a player who is consistently strong, cannot be overlooked.

Flavio Coboli

Rank: 14, Age: 24

Also in the Auger-Aliassime draw is Flavio Cobolli and they could meet in the quarter-finals. Koboli possesses great ball-striking ability and is a natural on the baseline who works well in the ground.

The 24-year-old led Italy to their Davis Cup title defense last November, winning every match, so he can handle the pressure.

Cobley is yet to drop a set at this year’s French Open and will face young American star Lerner Tien in the next round. If he wins that match in straight sets as well, it goes without saying that he has perfected his form and looks quite stress-free even in the heat of Paris this week.

Casper Rudd

Rank: 16, Age: 27

Kasper Rudd is set to meet Djokovic in the fourth round this Sunday if they both come through their tough third round ties. Rudd faces Tommy Paul of the United States, while Djokovic goes up against talented Brazilian Joao Fonseca.

Ruud is a clay-court specialist, reaching the finals of the 2022 and 2023 French Open, and his topspin causes all sorts of problems for anyone who plays.

The Norwegian has had a quiet 2025 but finished runner-up to Sinner at the Italian Open earlier this month and played in the semi-finals in Geneva a week later to ensure he is ready for Roland-Garros.

He nearly lost to Roman Safiulin in the first round on Monday but dug deep in five sets. With a possible clash with Djokovic in the last 16, even if Rudd beats the Serb, the rest of his draw is not easy and the physicality he endured in the first round could come back to bite him later.

Francis Tiafoe

Rank: 22, Age: 28

Frances Tiafoe came through a tough five-set match against Hubert Hurcaj in the second round but, with her big serve, she could always be a threat.

Tiafoe reached the quarter-finals of the French Open for the first time 12 months ago but clay is arguably her weakest surface.

He’s in the more open top half though, and doesn’t have to play any qualifiers until the last eight.

Raphael Jodar

Rank: 29, Age: 19

No Alcarez, no problem? Spanish tennis fans are getting very excited about teenager Rafael Zodar who has skyrocketed in the rankings this year.

Jodar was outside the top 100 in March but is ranked 29th in the world and is playing tennis that could take him deep into this French Open.

The 19-year-old won a Challenger Tour event on clay in April but his big breakthrough came at the Barcelona Open where he reached the semi-finals, then followed that up with runs to the quarter-finals in Madrid and Rome.

His powerful groundstrokes and natural ability to move across the clay have worked wonders but he’s also in the stacked bottom half of the draw that includes Zverev, Djokovic and Rudd.

Who else?

Apart from Djokovic, there are no other Grand Slam champions in the draw so it may not be one of the previous eight names mentioned.

Andrei Rublev Is in the top half and can cause problems if he can keep his head, and his compatriots Karen Khachanov Another name to watch in the bottom half – Zverev is likely to beat him in the fourth round.

62 in the world Raphael Collignon Major in straight sets in second round with incredible tennis but could not get past upset American No. 1 Ben Shelton in third round.

Moise KoumeThe 17-year-old has excited French fans after becoming the youngest player since Nadal in 2003 to reach the third round of a Grand Slam.

And what about the winner of the sinner Cerundlo? While the Argentine capitalizes on Siner’s physical issues, he needs to play better and it would be shocking if he makes a deep run in this tournament.

Papi may be out, but there is a huge opportunity for someone to fulfill their tennis dreams…

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