The French Open often termed as Roland-Garros, is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France The tournament begins in late May each year. The tournament and venue are named after the French aviator Roland Garros. It is the premier clay court championship in the world and the only Grand Slam tournament currently held on this surface.
Chronologically it is the second of the four annual Grand Slam tournaments. Every year the tournament occurs after the Australian Open and before Wimbledon and the US Open. Until 1975, the French Open was the only major tournament not played on grass. Between the seven rounds needed for a championship, the French Open is widely regarded as the most physically demanding tournament in tennis.
Tournament History:
Let’s have a look at the history of the famous tennis championship, the French Open. Officially it is called French Internationals of Tennis in English and also termed Rolland Garros frequently across the globe, though we all know it as French Open. This championship started way back in 1891 in France when it was only open to the members of the French Clubs. The first women’s singles tournament was held in 1897, with just four players, whereas the mixed doubles event was added in 1902 and the women’s doubles in 1907. No tournament was organized from 1915 to 1919 due to World War I.
French Open became a global tennis tournament in 1925, where it was open to all amateurs across the globe. In 1925 and 1927 the competition took place at the Stade Français in Saint-Cloud and in 1926 this event was hosted by the Croix-Catelan of the Racing Club de France hosted the event in Paris. All of these matches were played on clay courts.
World Championship history:
On May 24, 1928, the French International Championships moved to the Stade de Roland Garros stadium. Since then this event has been held here only on the clay court. After the Second World War, especially in the years 1946 and 1947, this competition was held after Wimbledon. It was the third Grand Slam event of the year at that time. Also, in 1968, during the French General Strike, the French Championships became the first Grand Slam tournament to open. Since then it allowed both amateurs and professionals to compete.
There are three different prizes were introduced in the competition in 1981, the Prix Orange prize, the Prix Citron, and the Prix Bourgeon. The respective honors are given to the players for the best sportsmanship, the strongest character, and the tennis player of the year. Also, since 2006, the tournament has begun on a Sunday with 12 singles matches played on the three main courts. The important facts of the French Open held in 2007, where equal prize money was announced for both female and male winners.
We saw a new tiebreaker format in the 2022 edition of the tournament. When the deciding set is tied at six-all, there will be a 10-point format to decide the winner. And if the tiebreaker game is also tied at 9-all, whoever scores two straight points will be the winner. The Grand Slam board has made this decision in all the Grand Slam events and it produced greater consistency in the game.
Also Read: French Open Men’s Singles Winners
French Open Surface Characters:
The French Open has been the only major played on clay courts since 1978 when the US Open changed to hard courts. The composition of the court includes mainly Red brick dust, crushed white limestone, clinker (coal residue), crushed gravel, and drain rock. These courts produce a relatively higher bounce and also slow down the ball when compared with grass courts or hard courts. The big servers and serve-and-volleyers can’t take advantage of the court which makes it hard for them to dominate in this competition.
Famous players like Pete Sampras, who won 14 grand slam titles, never won the French Open. Also, there are several famous players like John McEnroe, Frank Sedgman, John Newcombe, Venus Williams, Stefan Edberg, Boris Becker, Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Murray, Jimmy Connors, Louise Brough, Virginia Wade and Martina Hingis who have never won any French Open title.
On the other hand, the players tasted more success in the tournament whose games are more suited to jumpier surfaces. Some famous players like Rafael Nadal, Björn Borg, Ivan Lendl, Mats Wilander, Justine Henin, and Chris Evert, have found great success at this tournament. In the Open Era, the only male players who have won both the French Open and Wimbledon played on faster grass courts, are Rod Laver, Jan Kodeš, Björn Borg, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic. The only female players are Evonne Goolagong Cawley, Margaret Court, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Martina Navratilova, Steffi Graf, Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova, Garbine Muguruza, Simona Halep and Ashleigh Barty. Björn Borg holds the record of consecutive wins in French Open–Wimbledon doubles three times.
Championship Competitions:
The French Open consists of several competitions like the other grand slams. It has Men’s and women’s Singles events, Men’s and Women’s Doubles events, and the Mixed doubles tournament. It also has the Wheelchair men’s singles, women’s singles & quad singles along with the Wheelchair men’s doubles, women’s doubles, and Quad doubles.
Records of The French Open:
Rafael Nadal holds the record of winning the most singles titles (14 times) in the Open Era and Henri Cochet won 4 times in the Amateur Era. Nadal also holds the record of winning the French Open men’s singles title for the most consecutive times in the Open Era. Daniel Nestor & Max Mirnyi hold the record of winning the most men’s doubles titles in the open era whereas Roy Emerson in the amateur era. Roy Emerson in the Amateur Era and Daniel Nestor in the Open Era won the most consecutive men’s doubles titles.
Chris Evert won the Most women’s singles titles in the Open Era. On the other hand, Justine Henin and Monica Seles won the most consecutive women’s singles titles. Martina Navratilova won the most doubles titles, and Gigi Fernández and Martina Navratilova won the most consecutive doubles titles in the open era respectively.
Recent French Open Championship:
The 2023 French Open is the most recent competition held and the 2024 French Open is also going on. Novak Djokovic the champion of the men’s singles tournament had pulled out himself from this year’s competition due to a knee injury. The 2024 competition is now in the quarter-final stage today the 2024 French Open final will be on the 9th of June. Spectators from all around the globe can enjoy this competition now. Find out the French Open 2024 Complete list of All Winners here.