The 2018 French Open will feel like old times. Rafael Nadal has enjoyed an excellent clay-court season thus far. He has lost to only Dominic Thiem in Madrid. He won the Monte Carlo, Barcelona, and Rome tournaments. Nadal is the favorite for this tournament. Should he win, he will become the first singles player ever to win 11 times at one major tournament. Nadal is going for his 11th French Open trophy. Standing in his way: Novak Djokovic. Odds are courtesy of BetDSI.
Event Details
Event: French Open
Category: ITF (International Tennis Federation) Grand Slam
Date: May 27 – June 10, 2018
Location: Stade Roland Garros – Paris, France
With a prize money allotment of roughly 18.2 million Euros, the French Open’s purse speaks for itself. Players who merely get into the 128-player main draw make several tens of thousands of U.S. dollars. If they win their first-round match, they will make close to $50,000. This tournament will probably end with Nadal and/or Djokovic playing, but before the big guys finish the fortnight in France, dozens of lesser-known players will try to make sure they leave Paris with a large paycheck in hand.
Points
Champion – 2,000 points
Runner-up – 1,200
Semifinal – 720
Quarterfinal – 360
Round of 16 – 180
Round of 32 – 90
Round of 64 – 45
Former Champions and Results (5 Years)
Year Champion Runner-up Score
2017 – Rafael Nadal def. Stan Wawrinka – 6-2, 6-3, 6-1
2016 – Novak Djokovic def. Andy Murray – 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4
2015 – Stan Wawrinka def. Novak Djokovic – 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4
2014 – Rafael Nadal def. Novak Djokovic – 3-6, 7-5, 6-2, 6-4
2013 – Rafael Nadal def. David Ferrer – 6-3, 6-2, 6-3
Player Info:
This year, and unlike most of the past five years, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic were placed in the opposite halves of the draw. They met in the 2015 quarterfinals and were scheduled to play in the 2016 semifinals, only for Nadal to get injured and drop out of the tournament. They played in the 2013 semifinals as well. This time, however, they landed in opposite halves, meaning that they will be able to play in a Roland Garros final for the first time since 2014. Djokovic’s half of the draw, with Alexander Zverev and Grigor Dimitov being the highest seeds, is very open.
Dominic Thiem, who lost to Zverev in the Madrid final and who beat Rafa in Madrid, is in that half and will have a chance to cause trouble. Kei Nishikori, who made the Monte Carlo final and the Rome quarterfinals, is also in Djokovic’s half, but not his quarter. David Goffin, a top-10 player recovering from an eye injury, could meet Djokovic in the quarterfinals. Nadal has a clear path in his half of the draw, but Djokovic has a real chance to make a run in this half of the draw.
Stade Roland Garros
The old facility, now 90 years old, is the one tennis complex of the four major-tournament venues which does not have either lights or a roof. The French Open cannot facilitate night tennis. Roland Garros cannot play matches under a roof when it rains. Renovations have been discussed, but have run into snags. The future of this facility is a genuine question in Paris. The local government has not been able to formulate a plan everyone can agree with, though renovations have been made to the facility and a few outer courts have been added to the tennis complex.
