Rafael Nadal’s cruel first-round draw at the French Open marked his comeback to the competition.
Rafael Nadal, who is playing in the French Open for the first time in his career without a seed, was dealt a cruel draw. The 14-time winner’s first opponent will be Alexander Zverev, the #4 seed.
Andy Murray, who is making his first trip back to Roland Garros in four years, will also have a formidable test. Next up for the former world No. 1 is 2015 winner Stan Wawrinka.
In the meantime, French qualifier Pierre-Hugues Herbert will be the opponent for Novak Djokovic as he starts his title defense.
At the French Open on Thursday, when Nadal’s draw was revealed, there were audible gasps in the room. In his career, the ‘King of Clay’ has only suffered three defeats at Roland Garros. But when he returns to the Paris clay courts to take on Zverev, the 14-time winner will have his work cut out if he hopes to advance past the opening round. The German is riding a six-match winning streak going into the tournament, having recently won the Italian Open.
The world No. 4 has also advanced to the French Open semifinals in the last three tournaments, including in 2022 when he suffered an ankle injury while playing Rafael Nadal. After Nadal won the first set, it took them three hours to get to the 6-6 mark in the second. However, Zverev tumbled and broke many ankle ligaments.
In a wheelchair, he left the court and came back on crutches to retire. Zverev missed the remainder of the 2022 campaign due to injury. However, he will now start as the favorite in his highly anticipated first-round matchup with Nadal, who has been sidelined by injuries for the majority of the last 18 months and lost badly to Hubert Hurkacz in Rome.
Zverev is accused of hitting his ex-girlfriend, and he will go on trial during the French Open. Zverev is not required to appear in person for the trial, which starts on May 31. A Berlin court fined £383,000 (€450,000) and issued a penalty order in October of last year in response to the claims. Zverev refutes every accusation and challenged the decision, causing the matter to proceed to trial.
At the French Open, Murray will play Wawrinka for the third time in a row. The British player hasn’t participated in the competition since 2020, when he also faced and lost to the Swiss player in the first round.
His previous Roland Garros encounter was the semifinal in 2017, which he again lost to Wawrinka. It was a match that nearly took their lives. Following Wimbledon, both men’s seasons came to an end, and they have never since placed in the top 10 or won a Grand Slam.
In the meantime, Djokovic will start his championship defense in Paris against Herbert. The top player in the world is presently in Geneva to play a few more matches following a below-average start to the season.
He shares a draw quarter with Zverev and Nadal, as well as a half with two-time finalist Casper Ruud. The world No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz will face a qualifier or fortunate loser, while the second seed Jannik Sinner will face Christopher Eubanks in the opening round.
In the second round, four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka may meet reigning champion Iga Swiatek, who will instead play a qualifier or lucky loser.
Regarding the British, Jack Draper may play Alcaraz in the second round after opening against a qualifier. In the opening round, Dan Evans plays the 13th seed, and Cameron Norrie faces Pavel Kotov. In her opening bout, Katie Boulter faces Paula Badosa, and Harriet Dart faces Linda Noskova.