PARIS (AP) — A glance at the French Open, the second Grand Slam tennis tournament of 2024:
Surface
Red clay
Site
Roland Garros
Schedule
Play begins Sunday and lasts 15 days. There are day and night sessions. The women’s singles final is Saturday, June 8; the men’s singles final is Sunday, June 9.
Seedings
Defending champion Iga Swiatek is expected to be seeded No. 1 in the women’s bracket, with Australian Open winner Aryna Sabalenka next, reigning U.S. Open champion Coco Gauff at No. 3, and 2022 Wimbledon champ Elena Rybakina at No 4. Novak Djokovic, the other 2023 singles champion, should be No. 1 in the men’s draw, with Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner at No. 2, Carlos Alcaraz at No. 3, and Daniil Medvedev at No. 4. Rafael Nadal, the 14-time French Open champion who has missed much of the past two seasons with injuries, might not be seeded because his ranking is outside the top 250.
2023 Women’s Singles Champion
Iga Swiatek, Poland
2023 Men’s Singles Champion
Novak Djokovic, Spain
Last Year
Swiatek got past Karolina Muchova 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 for a third career championship at the French Open and fourth Grand Slam title overall. Djokovic defeated Casper Ruud 7-6 (1), 6-3, 7-5 for his 23rd major trophy. It was Djokovic’s third title at Roland Garros, making him the first man with at least three from each of the four Slam sites.
Raise the Roof
The tournament’s second retractable roof, now atop Court Suzanne Lenglen, will make its debut. The main stadium, Court Philippe Chatrier, got its roof in 2020.
See You Soon!
With Paris hosting the Olympics this year, many of the world’s best tennis players will return to Roland Garros to compete for medals from July 27 to Aug. 4. It is the first time the sport will be played on clay at a Summer Games since Barcelona in 1992.
Key Statistics
2005-07 — The last time a woman won three consecutive French Open titles, when Justine Henin did it. Swiatek will be trying to match that feat.
24 — Grand Slam singles titles for Djokovic, the most by a man in tennis history and the most by anyone in the Open era, which began in 1968.
Prize Money
Total prize money for the 2024 French Open is rising to nearly 53.5 million euros, about $58 million — an increase of nearly 8% from last year. The two singles champions each will receive 2.4 million euros, about $2.6 million.
___
AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
