Aryna Sabalenka arrives in Paris for the French Open as world number one, but her grip on the top of women’s tennis has loosened somewhat after a tricky run on clay in the build up to Roland Garros.
The Belarusian began the clay season in brilliant form, having already won three tournaments earlier in the year including the Sunshine Double in Indian Wells and Miami. She arrived in Madrid on a 15 match winning streak and looked the clear favourite to dominate the entire clay swing. However, a quarter final exit in Spain followed by an early third round defeat in Rome left question marks over her form heading into the French Open. After Rome she admitted she felt her body was holding her back.
Sabalenka will be hoping to go one better than last year, when she reached the final in Paris only to lose in three sets to Coco Gauff.
The defending champion Gauff is very much in the mix again, arriving on the back of a strong run in Rome where she only fell short in the final against Elina Svitolina. The Ukrainian is in brilliant form, having already won two titles this year including the Italian Open, and will be a serious threat in Paris.
Elena Rybakina, who has had arguably the strongest season on tour alongside Sabalenka, is another major contender, while Iga Swiatek, a four time Roland Garros champion, will be hoping a new coaching partnership can help her rediscover her best form on the clay.
Other names to watch include Madrid Open winner Marta Kostyuk and a clutch of exciting young players in Mirra Andreeva, Iva Jovic and Victoria Mboko.
