Tennis: French Open 2023

[Tuggy]

Qualifying is underway!

Roland-Garros - The 2023 Roland-Garros Tournament official site

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[Tuggy]

Big news of course is Nadal will not be at RG for the first time since 2004.

Andy Murray has also pulled out.

Djokovic will have an opportunity to win GS title #23. He is currently tied with Nadal at 22 career GS titles.

Nadal is the defending champion on the Men's side, so we'll have a new champion this year.

I think there is a list of players that you would consider for the title. Alcaraz is probably at the top but I don't consider him a huge favorite.

Medvedev is coming off his first clay title, but this is far from his favorite surface. Tsitsipas, Rune or Ruud could be there at the end aswell.

We'll see about our Canadian boys but I don't have much expectations.

Swiatek is the defending champion on the Women's side. She isn't as dominant this season but should still be considered the favorite entering the tournament.

Rybakina is in good form, although maybe not the most popular player right now

There will be a handful of others that will be in the mix. I don't expect Swiatek to repeat.

 

[John Price]

French Open to offer players cyber protection

French Open organizers announced Monday that the tournament will offer players access to a tool to help protect them from cyberbullying and social media harassment.

www.espn.com

 

[MVP of West Hollywd]

Going with Swiatek for womens, I think she will run up the French Open wins.

Men - Alcarez. I see him losing at Wimbledon and US Open so this can be his 2023 major.

 

[kihei]

Great "game day" post, Tuggy.

We will get some upsets along the way, but I think there are only six guys that can win it.

Alcaraz--well rested and should be over the trauma of one of the greatest upsets in tennis history.

Djokovic--the big question is his injury status. He says he's fine but is he just whistling past the graveyard? I think he might be.

Medvedev--on the basis of Rome and the dominant year that he has had (five titles), it would be unwise to rank his chances lower.
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Rune--biggest question mark for me: is he fit enough to win a seven match, five set tourament? I doubt it.

Tsitsipas-- basically a dark horse and the least likely of the top five to win it unless the stars align absolutely perfectly.
_________________________________________

Sinner-- a really long shot, but not utterly impossible. Hasn't yet put all the pieces together at a major and I doubt he starts now.

 

[Filppula]

If seeds hold:

Alcaraz/Tsitsipas
Djokovic/Rublev
Rune/Ruud
Sinner/Medvedev

Womens:

Swiatek/Gauff
Rybakina/Jabeur
Sakkari/Pegula
Garcia/Sabalenka

I’m going for an Alcaraz/Medvedev final. And women’s I’ll take Rybakina/Sabalenka (if she can get past Kostyuk R1).

 

[kihei]

Pretty even draw all around; the top four seeds seem to have about the same level of difficulty in each of their quarters. So getting to the quarters I'm sticking to the seeding with no exceptions.

Alcaraz/Tsitsipas
Djokovic/Rublev

Rune/Ruud
Sinner/Medvedev

Alcaraz/Djokovic
Rune/Medvedev

Alcaraz over Medvedev in the final


For the women's final

Rybakina over Pegula

 

[Elvis P]

6th seed Gauff went to the 22 Final, but she has Rybakina in her bracket.

 

[kihei]

Fils over Cerundolo in straight sets at Lyon and Jarry in straight sets over Dimitrov in Geneva. If I were a seeded player at Roland Garros, I wouldn't relish either of these guys popping up on my dance card in the early rounds.

 

[John Price]

Kostyuk booed for postmatch Sabalenka snub

Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka powered into the second round of the French Open with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk in a feisty clash to start the year's second Grand Slam on Sunday, but was left perplexed by jeering from some parts of the crowd.

www.espn.com

 

[Boss Man Hughes]

Kostyuk booed for postmatch Sabalenka snub

Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka powered into the second round of the French Open with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk in a feisty clash to start the year's second Grand Slam on Sunday, but was left perplexed by jeering from some parts of the crowd.

www.espn.com

Did she just wake up from 3 year nap? It's ridiculous that she is allowed to participate.

 

[Jussi]

Kostyuk booed for postmatch Sabalenka snub

Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka powered into the second round of the French Open with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk in a feisty clash to start the year's second Grand Slam on Sunday, but was left perplexed by jeering from some parts of the crowd.

www.espn.com

Yeah, not a good look from the French crowd.

 

[kihei]

No upsets and little suspense on the first day of the French Open. Stef and Rublev extended to four sets and Fernandez extended to three, but Pegula and Sabalenka have relatively easy times of it.

 

[Tuggy]

Hard fought 5 set win for Shapovalov. Not exactly a master on clay...

Another disappointing outing for Felix...out in straight sets.

 

[kihei]

Shapo: Wow. You could have knocked me over with a feather.
Felix: He's having the year from Hell. I really feel for the guy.

 

[Tuggy]

Shapo: Wow. You could have knocked me over with a feather.
Felix: He's having the year from Hell. I really feel for the guy.

This loss will more than likely knock Felix out of the top 10.

There is some talk he was unfit going into the match, but it's been a disaster season regardless.

Hopefully he can find some form for the grass season because it's a good surface for him.

 

[kihei]

Kovacevic acquitted himself well against his idol, not allowing Nole to serve out the match and forcing a third set tie breaker. Didn't see enough of the match to get a read on Nole, but he didn't seem terribly happy about how the final set was going.

 

[kihei]

What looked like the tastiest match-up of the first round instead proved anticlimactic, Davidovich Fokina kept his cool against French teen Fils, a youngster with top ten potential, and won in four sets. Playing his first GS match ever and at home, Fils was more than a little overwhelmed by the occasion and didn't really give himself a chance to win. Alejandro kept cool and kept the pressusre on throughout.

 

[kihei]

So two thirds of the way through the first round and the highest seeds to fall on both the men's and women's side are the #10s, a way off form Felix and Kvitova, for whom clay is her most problematic surface. The paucity of upsets should lead to some highly competitive second round matches.

Later: I missed #8 seed Sakkari who is having a disappointing season herself.

 

[Albatros]

'Kosovo is the heart of Serbia', Djokovic writes at French Open

Serbian world No. 3 Novak Djokovic risked stirring up a political controversy at the French Open on Monday, after writing a message about Kosovo on a camera lens following his first-round victory.

www.reuters.com

Apparently the audience were fine with that.

 

[Jussi]

'Kosovo is the heart of Serbia', Djokovic writes at French Open

Serbian world No. 3 Novak Djokovic risked stirring up a political controversy at the French Open on Monday, after writing a message about Kosovo on a camera lens following his first-round victory.

www.reuters.com

Apparently the audience were fine with that.

Yeah, he just can't stop being a cnut.

 

[Filppula]

Seyboth Wild choked plain and simple 2 SP’s to go 2-0.

 

[kihei]

Seyboth Wild choked plain and simple 2 SP’s to go 2-0.

For once, I think we need a stronger word than "choke." That will be the stuff of nightmares for the guy for years and years.

 

[kihei]

Sheesh. What a dumb service game from Medvedev. 2 all.

 

[kihei]

This match is deteriorating into a clown show as Medvedev is self-broken for love-2 at the start of the fourth set.