Renowned tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou has named Carlos Alcaraz, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic as the four top favorites for the French Open crown.
At No. 1, Mouratoglou listed Alcaraz, who has won Madrid and Barcelona this clay season.
“Here are four players to watch at Roland Garros this year. 1. Carlos Alcaraz. Carlitos is probably the most solid player at the moment. He won Barcelona, he won Madrid, as well as Miami a few weeks earlier. In Madrid, he became the first player to defeat both Nadal and Djokovic in the same clay court event,” Mouratoglou said in a clip uploaded on his Facebook.
After Alcaraz, Mouratoglou mentioned Tsitsipas.
Tsitsipas fell just short of winning his maiden Grand Slam at the French Open a year ago as he blew a two-set lead versus Djokovic in the final.
“2. Stefanos Tsitsipas. Finalist in Roland Garros last year. Tsitsipas also had a good clay court preparation for Roland Garros. He defended his title in Monte Carlo and racked up big wins over the last month,” Mouratoglou said.
Mouratoglou: Of course, Djokovic and Nadal
Djokovic had a rough start to the clay season but found his game and rhythm in Rome, where he lifted his first title of the year.
Djokovic has now set his eyes on defending his French Open crown.
“3. Novak Djokovic. There will be huge stakes for Djokovic at Roland Garros this year. He dominated across several Grand Slam tournaments last year and this will be his first Major in 2022. If he wins, he will tie Rafa in the GOAT race with 21 and be in a great position to take the lead,” Mouratoglou said.
Mouratoglou acknowledged that Nadal hasn’t had a perfect clay season but noted the Spaniard can never be ruled out from the French Open title contention.
“4. Of course, Rafael Nadal. He is known as the King of Clay and winning this year’s Roland Garros would mean taking a two-title lead on Roger and Novak in the GOAT race. But he didn’t have a great clay court in preparation for the French and didn’t look in too good physical shape against Shapovalov in Rome,” Mouratoglou concluded.