FRENCH OPEN 2023: Alcaraz seeded 1st; Djokovic 3rd; no Nadal
PARIS (AP) — With 14-time champion Rafael Nadal out of the tournament, here are top men to watch at the French Open, which begins at Roland Garros on Sunday:
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Seeded: 1
Career-Best Ranking: 1
Country: Spain
Age: 20
2023 Record: 30-3
2023 Titles: 4
Career Titles: 10
Grand Slam Titles: 1 — U.S. Open (2022)
Last 5 French Opens: 2022-Lost in Quarterfinals, 2021-3rd Round, 2020-Did Not Play, 2019-DNP, 2018-DNP
The Bracket: Could face No. 26 Denis Shapovalov in the third round and No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarterfinals.
Aces: Seeded No. 1 at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time. … Leads ATP on clay this season in match wins (20-2 record) and titles (3). … Turned 20 on May 5. Only five men won more titles as teens, and it’s quite a group: Bjorn Borg, Rafael Nadal, Mats Wilander, Boris Becker, Andre Agassi. … U.S. Open title last September helped Alcaraz become first teenager to finish a season at No. 1 in the ATP rankings; he recently overtook Novak Djokovic to regain the top spot. … Alcaraz missed the Australian Open in January after injuring his right leg while training.
He Said It: “It’s great to be the No. 1 seed in a Grand Slam — in Paris. That’s a tournament I really want to have a good result there.” — On looking ahead to the French Open.
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Seeded: 2
Career-Best Ranking: 1
Country: Russia
Age: 27
2023 Record: 39-5
2023 Titles: 5
Career Titles: 20
Grand Slam Titles: 1 — U.S. Open (2021)
Last 5 French Opens: 2022-4th, 2021-QF, 2020-1st, 2019-1st, 2018-1st
The Bracket: Could face No. 8 Jannik Sinner or No. 22 Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinals.
Aces: Won first career clay-court title at Italian Open this month. … So much more comfortable — and successful — on red clay than he used to be: Medvedev began his French Open career by going 0-4, exiting in the first round in each of his first four visits. Since then, he is 7-2. … A force on hard courts, Medvedev has reached four Grand Slam finals, winning one; the defeats came against Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic.
He Said It: “Every time somebody comes up (against) me playing on clay, they’re going to be like, ‘We have (a) chance.’” — On his reputation on clay, before winning the trophy in Rome.
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Seeded: 3
Career-Best Ranking: 1
Country: Serbia
Age: 36
2023 Record: 20-4
2023 Titles: 2
Career Titles: 93
Grand Slam Titles: 22 — French Open (2: 2016, 2021), Australian Open (10: 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023), Wimbledon (7: 2011, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022), U.S. Open (3: 2011, 2015, 2018)
Last 5 French Opens: 2022-QF, 2021-Won Championship, 2020-Runner-Up, 2019-SF, 2018-QF
The Bracket: Could face No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals.
Aces: Tied with Rafael Nadal for the most Grand Slam singles titles won by a man. … Has spent more weeks at No. 1 in the half-century of computerized singles rankings than any other man or woman. … He and Nadal have combined to win 16 of the past 19 Grand Slam tournaments — 10 by Djokovic. … Dealt this season with some issues with his right elbow, which was surgically repaired in 2018, but looked just fine in a practice session Thursday.
He Said It: “I always like my chances in Grand Slams against anybody on any surface, best-of-five. Let’s see how it goes.” — On looking ahead to Paris.
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Seeded: 4
Career-Best Ranking: 2
Country: Norway
Age: 24
2023 Record: 15-10
2023 Titles: 1
Career Titles: 10
Grand Slam Titles: None — Best: Runner-Up, French Open (2022), U.S. Open (2022)
Last 5 French Opens: 2022-RU, 2021-3rd, 2020-3rd, 2019-3rd, 2018-2nd
The Bracket: Could face No. 6 Holger Rune in the quarterfinals, a rematch of their contentious quarterfinal a year ago.
Aces: Entered 2022 with a 14-13 career record in Grand Slam main-draw matches and not one quarterfinal appearance at a major. He has gone 14-4 at those events since, including runner-up finishes at the French Open (to Rafael Nadal) and U.S. Open (to Carlos Alcaraz). … Leads ATP since start of 2020 in match wins (80), final appearances (11) and titles (9) on clay.
He Said It: “Your expectations are a little bit higher coming into tournaments, which can be dangerous. If it doesn’t go well, you think, ‘What am I doing wrong? What happened?'” — On following up his breakthrough 2022.
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Seeded: 5
Career-Best Ranking: 3
Country: Greece
Age: 24
2023 Record: 27-8
2023 Titles: Zero
Career Titles: 9
Grand Slam Titles: None — Best: Runner-Up, French Open (2021), Australian Open (2023)
Last 5 French Opens: 2022-4th, 2021-RU, 2020-SF, 2019-4th, 2018-2nd
The Bracket: Could face No. 10 Felix Auger-Aliassime or No. 24 Sebastian Korda in the fourth round.
Aces: At Roland Garros in 2021, became the youngest man to make it to the final of a Grand Slam tournament in more than a decade. Took a two-set lead against Djokovic before losing in five. … Lost to Djokovic in a major final again at Melbourne Park this January. … Has reached six Slam semifinals.
He Said It: “The desire is really there. I really, really want it badly. But just dreaming about it won’t make it happen. You got to act.” — On winning a Grand Slam title.
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Seeded: 6
Career-Best Ranking: 6
Country: Denmark
Age: 20
2023 Record: 27-10
2023 Titles: 1
Career Titles: 4
Grand Slam Titles: None — Best: Quarterfinals, French Open (2022)
Last 5 French Opens: 2022-QF, 2021-DNP, 2020-DNP, 2019-DNP, 2018-DNP
The Bracket: Could face No. 9 Taylor Fritz in the fourth round.
Aces: Run to Italian Open final shows he has what it takes for long stay in Paris. … Victory over Novak Djokovic in Rome was second in a row for Rune, who also beat the 22-time major champion at the Paris Masters last year. … That was part of Rune’s strong end to 2022, when he went 19-2 and claimed two titles. There were dips earlier in the season: He went 1-6 from January to February, then 0-7 from June to July.
He Said It: “I want to win a Grand Slam this year. That’s what I’ve said in the past, and I stick to that. Obviously I hope it can be achieved at the French Open. If not, I hope to make it in the other two Grand Slams.” — On his goals.
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Seeded: 8
Career-Best Ranking: 8
Country: Italy
Age: 21
2023 Record: 28-7
2023 Titles: 1
Career Titles: 7
Grand Slam Titles: None — Best: Quarterfinals, French Open (2020), Australian Open (2022), Wimbledon (2022), U.S. Open (2022)
Last 5 French Opens: 2022-4th, 2021-4th, 2020-QF, 2019-DNP, 2018-DNP
The Bracket: Could face No. 28 Grigor Dimitrov in the third round.
Aces: Has seemed on cusp of major breakthrough for quite some time, having reached the quarterfinals at all four Grand Slam tournaments. … Made it that far at three majors in 2022, including a loss to eventual champion Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon after taking the initial two sets, and a loss to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz at the U.S. Open after holding a match point. … Ranks fifth on tour over the past year in percentage of return games won, at 30%.
He Said It: “I feel like I can play on every surface quite well.” — On his versatility.
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Seeded: 16
Career-Best Ranking: 17
Country: United States
Age: 26
2023 Record: 16-9
2023 Titles: Zero
Career Titles: 1
Grand Slam Titles: None — Best: Semifinals, Australian Open (2023)
Last 5 French Opens: 2022-1st, 2021-2nd, 2020-2nd, 2019-1st, 2018-DNP
The Bracket: After facing a player from qualifying in the first round, could meet Nicolas Jarry or Hugo Dellien in the second.
Aces: Made good on promise shown during strong junior career by reaching first Grand Slam semifinal at Australian Open in January before losing to eventual champion Novak Djokovic. … Born in New Jersey; grew up in North Carolina; now based in Florida. … As a teen, won junior singles title and reached junior doubles final at French Open in 2015.
He Said It: “Walking on the court was cool. Playing the match and getting beaten like that kind of sucked.” — On facing Djokovic at Melbourne Park.
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Howard Fendrich has been the AP’s tennis writer since 2002. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/HowardFendrich
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