Jannik Sinner, Novak Djokovic Land in Separate Halves of French Open Draw

PARIS: Jannik Sinner, chasing his maiden French Open title to achieve the Career Grand Slam, will begin this year’s campaign at Roland Garros with an opening-round clash against local wildcard Clement Tabur, as per the draw ceremony held in Paris on Thursday.

World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz, the two-time defending champion, has withdrawn from the tournament due to a wrist injury. In the Spaniard’s absence, German World No. 3 Alexander Zverev, the 2024 runner-up, is the second seed and takes on Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi in the first round.

Novak Djokovic, eyeing a record-breaking 25th Major, meets big-serving Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.

Three-time champion Djokovic, who is also looking to create history by becoming the oldest man to win a Grand Slam at the age of 38, and Zverev are in the same half and expected to meet in the semifinals.

In the upper half, top seed Sinner is projected to take on fourth-seeded Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime for a place in the final.

Sinner, who became only the second man in history after Djokovic to complete the Career Golden Masters during last week’s Italian Open, is currently on a 29-match winning streak. The 24-year-old Italian’s first tricky test could be against the 30th-seeded Frenchman Corentin Moutet in the third round. The duo had met in the fourth round of the clay Major in 2024 and Sinner had to fight back from a set down to win 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-1.

Sinner also has ninth-seeded Kazakh Alexander Bublik and fifth-seeded American Ben Shelton in his quarter and could meet either of them for a place in the semifinals.

For Djokovic, a potential third round against Brazil’s Joao Fonseca or Croatia’s Dino Prizmic - the latter defeated the Serbian in the round of 16 in Rome - is on the cards.

Djokovic’s route to the semifinal may include a fourth-round match against 15th-seeded Norwegian Casper Ruud - the two players met each other in the final three years ago - and a quarterfinal against 11th-seeded Russian Andrey Rublev.

Former champion Stan Wawrinka and Gael Monfils both have received tough first-round opponents for their final French Open campaigns. Switzerland’s Wawrinka, who won the title by Djokovic in the 2015 final, faces 17th-seeded Frenchman Arthur Fils. The 39-year-old Monfils, who has received a wildcard like 41-year-old Wawrinka, will be up against fellow Frenchman Hugo Gaston. Agencies

Also Read: BCCI Unveils 2026-27 Domestic Schedule Featuring 1,788 Matches Across Men’s and Women’s Cricket