This is already the feeling of this Roland-Garros 2024, even before the main tournament has started. Rafael Nadal, the legend of the French Open, now ranked 274th in the world after his injury, is pitted from the start against the German Alexander Zverev, 4th in the world and recent winner of the Masters 1000 in Rome. A draw made possible by the status of the Spaniard, who benefits from a “protected classification”, even if this status did not allow him to avoid a strong opponent in the first round.
“It’s bad luck. We are used to thinking about Nadal who, almost every year since 2005, won Roland-Garros, except that the current Nadal, from the 2024 vintage, is not that one at all”, reacts Cédric Pioline, tennis consultant for Europe 1, the official radio of the French Open.
“Not necessarily a gift for Zverev”
The former world number five underlines that the Spaniard, victorious 14 times at the Parisian Grand Slam, an absolute record, “is in reconstruction and even at the end of his career. This is probably his last Roland-Garros at 38 years old”. Especially since he will have to battle with Alexander Zverev, one of the leaders of the ATP circuit, whom he had certainly eliminated in 2022 during a semi-final marked by the German’s serious injury.
However, according to Cédric Pioline, this draw “is not necessarily” either “a gift” for the current 4th in the world. “All these players who are very well ranked like to enter the tournament quietly, to gain strength. There, he will have a real challenge from the first round”, analyzes the double winner of the Davis Cup, not immune to a performance from the Mallorcan. “Given the last tournaments on clay that he has played, we see that he is quite far from his best level. But with Nadal, we have learned to be very careful because he can be surprising.”
The determining role of the Parisian public
Spectators will also be able to have their role to play, while the schedule for the meeting has not yet been revealed. “It will depend on the scenario: if there is a close match from the start, the public will be able to get involved, probably support the Spaniard because there is always this nostalgic side of a player who, we knows, will stop. On the other hand, if the match is one-sided, obviously the public will have a lot more difficulty getting involved,” explains Cédric Pioline. In any case, the Philippe-Chatrier court should be full to capacity to attend this historic meeting.