Ruud getting stuck into the battle

New York Times

28-05-2025

Catch up on the second day of action at Roland Garros, as the first round continued to play out in Paris Getty Images Getty Images
Ruud 6-3, 0-0* Ramos-Vinolas
With Emma Navarro playing on what feels like a subdued Court Suzanne-Lenglen, the feeling is very different on Court Simonne-Mathieu — where there is a palpable buzz in the air.
Norwegian seventh seed Casper Ruud and Spanish qualifier Albert Ramos-Vinolas are the men responsible, and both seem to be having a lot of fun as they spar through their first-round match.
A break in the fourth game was all it needed for Ruud to eventually seal the first set. The biggest thing in the early stages of the second has been Ruud taking a tumble and then patting himself down with his towel like a vintage rug.
Still, have you even played on the clay at Roland Garros if you haven't got it all over the back of your T-shirt?
B.Maneiro 6-0, *3-0 Navarro
Let's starting bringing you up to speed with some of the early action on this second day at the French Open.
There is only one place to start. I was hoping if I delayed it, I might have better news from the American ninth seed Emma Navarro, but her plight is getting worse with each passing game.
Jessica Bouzas Maneiro pocketed a bagel in the opening set, and is already a break up in the second too.
Navarro looks a little lost out there and is playing a pretty desperate match: her first serve percentage is at 45 and she has won just 22 percent of her second serve points. That is a pretty toxic combination.
In fact, Navarro has just gone a second break down in the second set and returns to her seat, left staring into the clay beneath her. Listen and subscribe to The Tennis Podcast
We have our own tennis podcast at The Athletic these days, after we welcomed The Tennis Podcast into our stable.
The crew will reflect on all the action at Roland Garros throughout the French Open — and here you will find their review of the opening day's action.
From the ceremony honouring Rafael Nadal, to dominant starts for Aryna Sabalenka and Zheng Qinwen, and looking ahead to what's in store for us all today… Go have a listen and subscribe.
So, what do you do with the fact that a true legend of the sport has enjoyed five farewells?
You do exactly what our correspondent Matthew Futterman has done: you rank them.
From last year's Madrid Open to the Paris 2024 Olympics singles held at Roland Garros, as well as the doubles, then onto the Davis Cup quarterfinals and finally (probably) the French Open last night, Rafael Nadal has been given the long — but also repeated — goodbye.
As Matthew signed off:
📝 'It will live on Court Philippe-Chatrier forever. Little could be more fitting.'
That was the plaque, but maybe also the ceremony. You can reading his wonderful writing in full, below.
GO FURTHER
Rafael Nadal's tennis farewell ceremonies reviewed, from Roland Garros to Madrid Getty Images
A very good day to you all wherever you are reading this, and welcome once again to our live coverage of the French Open at Roland Garros.
What a beautiful night it was on Court Philippe-Chatrier as Roland Garros said a proper a heartfelt goodbye to a true legend — and as James Hansen has mentioned, what a treat of a date we have in store on the way too.
Personally, I find watching Carlos Alcaraz on clay is always a treat. The second seed is second on Court Suzanne-Lenglen today, taking on Italian qualifier, Giulio Zeppieri.
Our correspondents will be treating us to their tails, views, and stories from around the grounds, while we will keep you on top of all the key matches, points, quotes and developments on a packed day at the French Open.
Welcome to the ride and remember you can get in touch with me and my colleagues throughout the championships, with an email to [e-mail]
I'm already looking forward to reading what you have for us!
How to follow an emotional farewell for the greatest men's champion the French Open has ever seen?
In the wake of Rafael Nadal's ceremony last night, the men's and women's singles first rounds kick into high gear on day two.
Iga Świątek, Carlos Alcaraz, Naomi Osaka and Jannik Sinner all open their campaigns today.
Those players are on the biggest show courts, Philippe-Chatrier and Suzanne-Lenglen, which means that fans on the field courts of Roland Garros are in for one of the best experiences a Grand Slam can offer: watching a star player in the flesh from a few feet away.
Just a sample: French Open finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas is on Court 6, 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu is on Court 8, and 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko — who is hoping to set up a fourth-round clash with Świątek, against whom she has never lost — is last on Court 13.
Space is at a premium at Roland Garros, so the outer courts are packed together, offering vantage points from gangways and food concessions as much as the seats.
Ground-pass holders will be in for a treat.
GO FURTHER
Rafael Nadal's French Open ceremony brings Federer, Djokovic and Murray back to Roland Garros
Let's take you through today's order of play, starting with the first-round matches on the high-profile show Court Philippe-Chatrier.
Play is due to start in just over an hour… R. Šramková vs. I. Świątek (5)
N. Osaka vs. P. Badosa (10)
T. Atmane vs. R. Gasquet
J. Sinner (1) vs. A. Rinderknech
So that's three matches during the day with Jannik Sinner's first-round match coming in the evening session — meaning it will not start before 8:15 p.m. local time (2:15 p.m. ET). Getty Images
Reigning women's singles champion Iga Świątek is in action today — as a four-time winner of the French Open she knows what it takes to be successful at Roland Garros.
So how does she feel coming into the tournament and her first round game today? Well, she spoke earlier in the tournament when the draw was made about her hopes for this year:
"Every year is different, so you need to look ahead and have your goals for the future," she said. "But I am proud of my achievements here. I have great memories from past years and every tournament was a totally different story so I learned a lot, and it's always a pleasure to come back here and to play on these courts again. These are the best courts to play in.
"Everybody is here to win. I am working hard to be as ready as possible and to play good tennis. This season has had more ups and downs than the seasons before but I know my game is there. I just need to figure out how to use it at the best moments in matches. Tennis is sometimes a complicated sport but we should make it easy in our head so I'll start, step by step." Getty Images
No player has made themselves feel at home like Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros.
The Spaniard dominated the men's singles event for 20 years, picking up a record 14 titles along the way. It earned the now-retired Nadal his own statue outside the famous old venue, where he amassed a remarkable 112 wins and just three defeats in his career.
And yesterday, we were treated to a tribute ceremony on Court Philippe-Chatrier to honour his career at this tournament.
Here's a reminder of his French Open record: Record titles won: 14
Highest number of victories at a single major: 112
Longest winning streak in Roland Garros history: 39 matches (2010-2015)
Seven finals won in straight sets
Four titles won without dropping a set Getty Images
They are the star of the show at the French Open: the dusty red courts that provide some of the most entertaining tennis on the calendar.
For more than 50 years, the clay used at Roland Garros has come from a single factory in Oise, north of Paris and is made of bricks that are specifically used in France.
Around 2,000 tonnes of bricks are needed each year to produce enough clay for tennis courts — 80 tonnes of clay is the usual order for courts at the French Open.
The clay comes from new bricks with imperfections unsuitable for construction being crushed into a fine sand. Those particles of dust are less than one-tenth of a milimeter in size, creating the perfect surface for players to slide. Getty Images
Roland Garros is famous for its red clay courts, which consist of crushed brick rolled over a limestone surface. Different clay courts around the world play differently and, as Venus Williams told the New York Times in 2010:''All clay courts are different. None play the same. This one (Roland Garros) plays the best.'
Clay can be the most physically demanding surface for players, who can slide as they meet the ball, and is slower than hard courts or grass. That requires players to think multiple shots ahead and execute subtle moves by executing more spin.
Countries where clay courts are common — France, Spain, Italy, the Mediterranean and Latin America — have produced players who have typically fared well at Roland Garros.
Named after the French aviator, Roland Garros lies in Paris's 16th arrondissement and is the only major to be played on clay courts. The name of the stadium is used interchangeably with the tournament's official title of the French Open, with 20 courts making up the stadium complex.
The biggest is Court Philippe-Chatrier, which has a 15,000 seat capacity. It was completed in 1928 as France prepared to defend its Davis Cup title at a peak period for tennis in the country dominated by the 'Four Musketeers' (Jean Borotra, Jacques Brugnon, Henri Cochet and René Lacoste).
One stand is named after each of the tennis Musketeers at Court Philippe-Chatrier. Getty Images
Every sporty kid dreams of the moment — lifting a trophy in front of adoring fans.
Well, in the men's tournament at the French Open, that means lifting the Coupe des Mousquetaires. The silver bowl-shaped trophy is named after four of France's famous tennis players known as the Four Musketeers (Jean Borotra, Jacques Brugnon, Henri Cochet and Rene Lacoste).
As for the women's singles champion, she collects the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen — named after the female French tennis player who was the inaugural world No. 1 from 1921 to 1926.
That's some history behind both trophies.
It's a pretty tidy sum for those lucky enough to be crowned champions.
Both the men's and the women's singles champions will take home an equal prize pot of €2.55 million (£2.33 million / $3.09 million).
That's an increase from the €2.4 million (£2.02 million / $2.72 million) won by Iga Świątek and Carlos Alcaraz last year.
But the winners' trophy and a place in history is the real prize for most players.
The story goes that Sabalenka started playing tennis by chance as a child — and it's a pretty good piece of fortune that she did.
Three major titles, 20 WTA Tour titles and the current No. 1 WTA ranking later and it's safe to say her commitment to that moment of chance has paid off. Sabalenka's best French Open finish is in the semifinal in 2023, so she will be looking to go one further this year to put herself another step closer to a career Grand Slam.
In a warm up for the competition at the Italian Open, she was knocked out in the quarterfinals by Zheng Qinwen in straight sets, but she advanced to the second round yesterday with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Kamilla Rakhimova. The Athletic
It's a busy time in the sports world — and the calendar is only getting busier as we head into the summer.
The Premier League season might be over but we have the Club World Cup and the Women's Euros to look forward to.
Plus the Formula One and MLB seasons continue and Wimbledon isn't far away either.
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We'll be bringing you live updates and analysis throughout today's action (and plenty in the build-up, too) but if you want to catch Roland Garros live, here's all the information you need: U.S.: TNT Sports, Max
TNT Sports, Max UK: TNT Sports
TNT Sports Canada: TSN
TSN France: France.tv Sport, Amazon Prime Getty Images
The first round matches in both the men's and women's singles begin today at 11 a.m. CEST, which is 10 a.m. BST in London.
That works out at 5 a.m. ET on the east coast of the U.S. and 2 a.m. PT on the west coast.
This evening's session will start no earlier than 8:15 p.m. CEST in Paris, which is 7:15 p.m. BST, 2:15 p.m. ET, and 11:15 a.m. PT.
Hello and welcome along to today's coverage of the second day of the French Open at Roland Garros!
And what a tournament we should have in store at this, the second major of the year and the only one to be held on clay.
We have a full slate of matches at this early stage of the competition in the men's and women's singles, so stick around for all the latest news, analysis, and match updates from around the courts as play gets underway.