Greetings From Paris! By Kristen Tracy

Written by: Staff on 25th May 2013

Greetings From Paris! By Kristen Tracy |

To most of the world, Paris is the City of Lights, the City of Love. But to tennis fans, the French capitol is best known for two words: Roland Garros. And while the weather hasn’t been the most cooperative the last few days, I’m confident that the sun will be shining soon and we’ll have some great matches to look forward to in the next two weeks.

Monday begins the second major of the year and all eyes are on the red clay and the men and women of the ATP and WTA tours. Draws were released this week and both singles events have the potential for some pretty incredible matches.

On the women’s side, American Serena Williams shares a quarter with 10th seeded Caroline Wozniacki. Old sister Venus isn’t in the same quarter but is in the same half, leaving the potential for an all-Williams semifinal. In the bottom half of the draw, Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka are the obvious two standouts. Look for the favored youngest Williams sister to have a fairly easy road to the finals, while the Russian Sharapova will have a little bit tougher road, but will still make a final appearance. In the end, I predict your 2013 French Open women’s champion will be Maria Sharapova – winning a well-fought three set match in the finals.

With the withdrawal of Andy Murray and Juan Martin Del Potro, the men’s draw lacks a few of its elite attractions. But the big three (Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal) are still in play and they alone are known to provide some pretty entertaining athleticism. Nadal landed in the Djokovic half of the draw, which means that the earliest he would meet the Serbian would be the semifinals – match that would be more indicative of a final. It will be a difficult match for both players, but expect Djokovic to come out on top in four sets. I see no real issues for Federer is his quarter so his appearance in the finals is all but a given. His real challenge will come in facing the world no.1. Though the Swiss holds a 16-13 head-to-head lead against the Serbian they are tied 3-3 on clay, with Djokovic winning the last two meetings. This year’s final has the potential to be another great match up between the two players but in the end, your 2013 French Open men’s champion will be Novak Djokovic – winning in four long and grueling sets.

Follow Kristen on Twitter! @KristensKourt