By Richard Pagliaro | Thursday, May 19, 2022
World No. 1 Iga Swiatek rides a 28-match winning streak into Paris and faces a series of dangerous threats. We preview dominance and dark horses in Paris.
Photo credit: Getty
Iga Swiatek has turned the spring season into a joy ride.
World No. 1 Swiatek picked up a Porsche for winning Stuttgart and rides a 28-match winning streak into Roland Garros.
More: Lopez Mind-Blowing Streak Ends
The 2020 champion confronts a rocky red road to reclaiming her Roland Garros crown.
The Roland Garros singles draws were conducted in Paris today. The top quarter presents some major potential roadblocks for Swiatek.
Here’s our Top 5 Takeaways from the Roland Garros women’s draw.
Swiatek Swamped With Threats
We know Iga Swiatek has played transcendent tennis winning 42 of the last 43 sets she’s contested and posting a 35-3 record, including a perfect 5-0 mark in finals this season.
The top seed celebrates her 21st birthday on May 31st—will she be able to craft a Paris party?
In a loaded top quarter, Swiatek opens vs. a qualifier and would face either American Alison Riske or hard-hitting Ukrainian Dayana Yastremska in round two.
Explosive No. 25-seeded Liudmila Samsonova, who controlled the center of the court at times bowing to Swiatek 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-5 in Stuttgart could be waiting in round three.
A fourth-round showdown could pit Swiatek against a fellow former French Open champion—either former world No. 1 Simona Halep or Latvian laser-striker Jelena Ostapenko.
Though Swiatek swept Halep en route to the 2020 title the pair have split four meetings. The 13th-seeded Ostapenko, the last woman to beat Swiatek this year, could be a major obstacle as she owns a 3-0 lifetime record vs. the top seed, including winning six of the seven sets she played.
Should Swiatek survive that first potential first-week onslaught, she could face a potential quarterfinal vs. Madrid finalist Jessica Pegula, 24th-seeded Tamara Zidansek, Ekaterina Alexandrova or former Grand Slam finalist Karolina Pliskova.
Despite all that, you still have to view Swiatek as the strong favorite.
"Who can stop Swiatek on her best surface, clay, at the major where she's already won?" Hall of Famer and Tennis Channel analyst Pam Shriver told the media in a conference call. "I think right now given her form, given her confidence, I think the only thing that can really stop her is if she shows up below par, below what we've seen in the 28 matches in a row on average.
"Obviously she had some battles during that streak, the Samsonova match in Stuttgart, the first set against Andreescu last week. There have been moments where she hasn't been at her best, but her record in second sets or her record in even tight first sets has been tremendous.
"So I think she goes in as the biggest favorite since I'd say the last person that's had a dominant streak like this, 2014 when Serena Williams was the dominant player."
The question is: How will Iga handle the pressure of being dominant favorite, particularly if she falls behind early in a match?
Bottom Beneficiaries
Several seeds should relish the view from the bottom half of the draw.
No. 4 Maria Sakkari
The talented Greek owns just one career title, a sign Sakkari can be skittish at closing time. Since losing to Swiatek in the Indian Wells final, Sakkari has gone 3-4. But she has the heavy topspin forehand and blazing speed that play well on dirt and is coming off a career-best run to the Roland Garros semifinals. If Sakkari can keep calm, she can go deep.
No. 6 Ons Jabeur
Overshadowed by Swiatek’s streak is the fact Jabeur won 11 consecutive clay-court matches before bowing to the world No. 1 in the Rome final. Madrid champion Jabeur leads the WTA in clay-court wins posting a 17-3 record on dirt this season, is coming off back-to-back round of 16 results in Paris and should carry plenty of confidence for a deep run. The Tunisian trailblazer owns a deadly drop shot and will deploy it often. Jabeur opens against Magda Linette with No. 32-seeded Petra Kvitova looming as her first possible seeded opponent.
No. 2 Barbora Krejcikova
Spare a thought for the reigning Roland Garros singles and doubles champion who has been sidelined since last February due to a right elbow injury. The lack of match play, insufficient clay play, the cranky right elbow that required kinesiology tape during Krejcikova’s practice today and the pressure of defending 2,000 ranking points are all obviously major hurdles. Still, Krejcikova, who opens vs. Frenchwoman Diane Parry and was all smiles at the draw ceremony today, has a fairly friendly draw. The WTA Most Improved Player for 2021 has risen to challenges in the past though defending a Grand Slam title without much match play obviously a huge ask.
Opening Round Blockbuster Battles
No. 27 Amanda Anisimova (USA) vs. Naomi Osaka (JPN)
Head-to-head: Anisimova leads 1-0
Power players committed to making the first strike the last word in rallies square off for the second straight Slam.
At the Australian Open, a determined Anisimova out-dueled Osaka 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(5) and the four-time Grand Slam champion will be pumped up to avenge that loss.
Former world No. 1 Osaka withdrew from Rome due to an Achilles issues she suffered in Madrid, but is practicing in Paris. Recalling her recent loss to Anisimova in an Indian Wells charity exhibition, Osaka joked about this rematch "Hopefully, I'll get more than two points.
"I think it's better for me to play her in a first round than in like when people get warmed up and stuff," Osaka told the media in Paris. "So it's easier for me to play a seed in the first round than to play them in like any other round. I think that we both will draw from the experiences. I think me having two match points is comforting.
"I'm honestly not sure if clay is a better surface for her, because I know she went to the semis a couple years ago. So yeah, I'm glad that I played her in Australia, so like I can draw from that experience."
No. 10 Garbine Muguruza (ESP) vs. Kaia Kanepi (EST)
Head-to-head: Muguruza leads 1-0
Their lone meeting came eight years ago at the Australian Open with Muguruza prevailing 6-2, 2-6, 6-2. Since her run to the 2016 Roland Garros title, the flat-hitting Muguruza has hit highs (2018 semifinals) and lows (an opening round exit last year). She’ll need to come out firing against the ballistic-hitting Kanepi, a former world No. 15 who has reached a couple of French Open quarterfinals and has a habit of bringing her best vs. high seeds.
No. 3 Paula Badosa (ESP) vs. WC Fiona Ferro (FRA)
Head-to-head: Badosa leads 1-0
Full crowds in Paris should supply wild card Ferro, an athletic mover on clay, plenty of support. Badosa is third on the WTA Tour in the ace race, has shown she can dictate play against even elite players and is coming off a career-best quarterfinal appearance at the 2021 Roland Garros.
Dark Horses to Watch
We’re defining dark horses as players outside the Top 10 seeds.
No. 19 Simona Halep (ROM)
It’s a brutal draw for the 2018 champion, who opens against Ana Konjuh and could face red-hot Iga Swiatek. But the former No. 1 says she’s recharged working with new coach Patrick Mouratoglou. If Halep is hammering her backhand down the line with ambition and covering the court with urgency watch out for the woman who has reached the fourth round or better in six of her last seven Paris appearances.
No. 18 Coco Gauff (USA)
Do you remember last June when former Roland Garros girls’ champion Gauff opened up a 5-3 lead on eventual-champion Barbora Krejcikova in the quarterfinals before losing her way? You better believe Gauff hasn’t forgotten and will be pumped to play on what she suggests may be her best surface. Yes, the 18-year-old Delray Beach native must refine some of the rough edges—her elaborate forehand backswing can pose timing issues, her western grip can cause her to predictably play the forehand slice on low ballsand her second serve can sometimes go off. But the gritty Gauff can crack the first serve, owns a bold backhand, isn’t afraid to move forward and is one of the fastest women in the sport—all of those elements make her a dangerous player in Paris.
No. 72 Bianca Andreescu (CAN)
Critics point out Andreescu owns just one Roland Garros main draw win, has seen her body betray her with a litany of injury and is at her best on hard court as reasons to bury her dirt chances. Don’t believe it. The 21-year-old Andreescu remains one of the most versatile and creative all-court players in the game. Yes, we realize she’s not at her best on clay, but Andreescu showed her imagination and superb racquet skills pushing No. 1 Swiatek to a tiebreak set in Rome. Working with respected coach Sven Groeneveld, the 2019 US Open champion seems to have regained passion and purpose.
Former Roland Garros Girls’ Champions in the Field
Seventeen-year-old Czech Linda Noskova, the reigning Roland Garros girls’ champ, made her mark today becoming the youngest player to qualify for the RG main draw in 13 years.
Noskova joins these former Roland Garros girls’ champions in the main draw: Kaia Kanepi, Alize Cornet, Simona Halep, Kristina Mladenovic, Ons Jabeur, Belinda Bencic, Daria Kasatkina, Paula Badosa, Coco Gauff, Leylah Fernandez and Elsa Jacquemot.
Roland Garros TV Coverage
Tennis Channel said it plans to be a “Roland Garros Channel” during the 15-day event, with live matches from the start of play in the morning through the night sessions on most evenings. Once the final match has concluded, the network will show encore replays throughout the late night and early morning up to the start of the next day’s play.
The typical schedule sees matches underway at 5 a.m. Eastern until the late afternoon when encores begin. Tennis Channel says it "plans to show more than 140 live hours of matches from this year’s French Open, and another 185 hours of encores, dedicating 325 total hours to competition."
Live coverage runs from the first day of play Sunday, May 22 through the women’s doubles final on the final day of the event, Sunday, June 5. This includes the mixed-doubles and women’s singles semifinals Thursday, June 2; the men’s singles semifinals Friday, June 3; and the juniors singles finals Saturday, June 4. Tennis Channel will also show same-day encores of the men’s and women’s singles and doubles finals during championship weekend.
