There will be a new men’s grand slam champion crowned at Roland Garros next weekend at the French Open. In two dramatic five-set matches in two days, Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic were knocked out from contention, leaving the men’s draw wide open with the guarantee of a first time victor.
With 28 grand slams between them, Sinner and Djokovic were not able to capitalise on the absence of 2024 and 2025 champion Carlos Alcaraz, who withdrew before the tournament due to a wrist injury.
With Daniil Medvedev also bounced out in the first round on his least favourite surface, there is suddenly no guarantee of who will go on to lift the trophy on Court Philippe Chartrier – but glory awaits someone who has never tasted it at this level before. Here are the leading candidates.
Alexander Zverev
The title favourite is now world number three Alexander Zverev. The 29-year-old German has reached a grand slam final on three occasions, including at the French in 2024, when he went up two sets to one against Alcaraz but failed to convert his chance. Zverev’s inability to get past Sinner and Zverev regularly on the biggest stage has been his recurring issue – the failure to win a slam remains the greatest mark against him.
Zverev is the third best player in the world and is due a title; his game is well suited to clay, where he can use his heavy groundstrokes to plug away in rallies. His challenge has always been to get over the mental hump – and once again, that might be what comes back to haunt him if he fails to get over the line.
Casper Ruud
Another three-time slam finalist, and one who identifies as a clay court specialist. Casper Ruud has started the tournament poorly with a pair of five-setter, but has made two finals in Paris, losing to Nadal and Djokovic. This time, there is an argument to be made that there isn’t a better player than him that he could meet in the final.
However, Ruud finds himself in a tricky portion of the draw. His game next is against the Djokovic-killer Joao Fonseca, following which he would run into Andrey Rublev or Jakub Mensik. A semifinal against Zverev would follow. Ruud has the familiarity, but has to get through a gauntlet to reach the final.
Felix Auger-Aliassime
The number of players to take two or more sets of Rafael Nadal in a single match are minimal. Felix Auger-Aliassime is one of those – a hard-court specialist, but one who has the big game to make an impact on any surface.
FAA is not a player one would usually look at for a deep clay-court run, and isn’t in the best run of form. But the biggest asset in his favour is a top half of the draw that has emptied out considerably. He is surrounded by players who are comfortable on clay courts, so it won’t be an easy run – but he is talented, and has the game to make a difference.
Rafael Jodar
The French Open has been a happy hunting ground for Spanish teenagers this century – could young Rafael Jodar join the ranks of Nadal and Alcaraz? Into the fourth round in just his second senior slam, Jodar has suddenly graduated from a dark horse to a player who has the opportunity to make waves in a substantial way. Jodar has rocketed up the rankings over the duration of the clay court swing, reaching the quarterfinals in Rome and Madrid, plus the semifinals in Barcelona. With the draw opening up, a couple of big results could take him all the way – and he certainly has the clay court game to take advantage.
Outside candidates
After his massive victory over Djokovic, Brazilian teenager is prime amongst the dark horses for the tournament. After two exhausting five-setters, Fonseca needs to fight through the biggest names in the tournament. He has the forehand – but does he have the explosive physicality that winning Roland Garros requires?
Jakub Mensik and Andrey Rublev will contest a round of 16 fixture, and have a trick run in the bottom half – but Rublev has a golden chance to get over his quarterfinal curse, while Mensik could get the deep grand slam run to deliver on his promise after excellent results in the three-set tournaments.
Back in the top half, there is a chance for Matteo Berrettini to really focus and produce some of his best tennis. He has suffered rough patches of form and injuries, but should not be written off just yet with his massive serve and forehand combination. Similar for Frances Tiafoe, who is probably the best player left in his quarter, and can ride his power.
The home favourite is now 17-year-old Frenchman Moise Kouame, who has the weight of the partisan French support behind him. How far can the slam debutant ride that wave – and is he going to take the mantle for French tennis forward?
