French Open 2021 preview: Can anyone dethrone Rafael Nadal or will the King of Clay win a record-extending 14th title?

The second Grand Slam of the season kick starts on Sunday as the world’s best players travel to Paris and set foot on the famous crushed brick of Roland Garros.

The King of Clay Rafael Nadal returns to his most successful venue in search of a record-breaking 21^st Grand Slam title with a record-extending 14^th French Open trophy. But, as the history books of tennis look set to write a new chapter, the rest of the field look primed to mount a stern challenge for the Coupe Da Mousquetaires.

Nadal enters Paris having won just two clay court tournaments in the lead up to the event. While this would be a considerable success for most players on the tour, many are questioning whether it shows susceptibility in the Spaniard’s game due to the sheer domination on clay from earlier in his career.

The sport of tennis has never seen a player so dominant on a single surface and it has become expected for the Spaniard to clean sweep every clay tournament he enters, sometimes without even dropping a set.

However, despite adding a 12th Barcelona Open title and a 10th Rome Masters’ title to his trophy cabinet, defeats in Madrid and Monte Carlo have led to many questioning whether yet another French Open title is as nailed on as it has been in the previous years.

The manner of the defeats and the performances from Nadal have also been questioned. Not only did Nadal lose to Alexander Zverev in straight sets and Andrey Rublev in three sets, the 34-year-old dropped a total of nine sets in just 16 matches during the warm-up tournaments and even had to save a match point against Stefanos Tsitsipas en route to victory in Rome.

Once again, these numbers would usually be applauded had they been achieved by anyone other than Nadal but the Spaniard won the French Open last year without dropping a single set for the fourth time in his career and these performances could prove that the chasing pack are getting closer.

Not only is it the performances, it is the variety of opponents in which Nadal has found it difficult against. Since 2011 it has seemed the only real challenger to Nadal and the Roland Garros crown was Novak Djokovic and even the Serbian was swept past in the final of the tournament last year.

The next generation of tennis talent is beginning to push through and challenge the old firm of Nadal, Djokovic and Roger Federer and, for the first time ever, all of the big three have been drawn in the same half of the draw meaning that only one can reach the final.

This creates almost a mini tournament on the other half of the draw for the likely honour of facing one of the big three in the final of a major tournament and the young and upcoming players will look to make the most of the opportunity presented to them.

However, who will lift the trophy on the Sunday, June 13? Here at TIBS News we assessed the candidates…

Rafael Nadal

While he may have been less convincing than in previous years, as the French Open looms it was once again Nadal claiming the title in the last major warm-up tournament before the event. And victory over his arch-enemy Djokovic will have done himself wonders in terms of confidence going into Roland Garros.

Additionally, walking on to Court Philippe Chatrier brings its own air of confidence for the Spaniard having only lost twice there in 102 matches. Opponents know the enormity of the task ahead of them and many are beaten before even stepping on to the court such is the scale of the job ahead of Nadal’s opponents.

Despite being set to turn 35 midway through the tournament, the longer format of tennis at Grand Slams also benefits Nadal’s challenge for a 14th French Open title.

The warm-up tournaments are best of three sets and just a few moments of magic or even unforced errors can lead to defeat whereas at Roland Garros Nadal’s opponents will be forced to outplay and outlast the greatest to ever grace the dirt over five long and grueling sets.

On 100 occasions the rest of the tour has been incapable of doing just that and therefore Nadal will be overwhelming favourite going into the tournament.

Novak Djokovic

If anyone has a track record of producing the level of tennis required to topple the King of Clay then you have to look no further than Djokovic.

The Serbian holds a positive win-loss record over Nadal winning 29 of their 57 encounters on tour.

Despite being emphatically behind 21-8 in their clay-court meetings, crucially one of those victories was one of only two defeats Nadal has ever suffered at the French Open.

Djokovic dispatched Nadal in straight sets in the 2015 quarter-finals and in the following year became only one of three players still on tour to have lifted the Coupe Da Mousquetaires other than the Spaniard.

The World No 1 is also just two Grand Slam titles behind the realm of Nadal and Federer having won 18 in his career. A 19th at Roland Garros would put the Serbian in pole position to move to the top of the standings by the end of the season.

Dominic Thiem

Aside from Djokovic, Dominic Thiem has been the other player to seem to have the game to penetrate the armour of Nadal at Roland Garros.

The pair have met four times in the last seven years at the French Open, two of which have been in the final.

Though Thiem has only taken one set in those meetings the Austrian’s powerful groundstrokes and great movement on the surface makes him a serious threat to anyone on the tour.

However, unlike in previous years Thiem has yet to find the form that has won him 10 career titles on clay losing early in Rome and Lyon in the past two weeks.

Yet the Grand Slams are notoriously the moments that the best players perform to the top of their game and having won a maiden slam at the US Open last year the Austrian will be looking to prove his credentials to the big three once again this time at his favourite major of them all.

Stefanos Tsitsipas

Stefanos Tsitsipas has risen to the forefront of the tour in the past two seasons. The 22-year-old Greek grew up playing on clay and last year pushed Djokovic to a fifth and final set in the semi-finals of the French Open.

This season Tsitsipas produced a sensational comeback to defeat Nadal from two sets down at the Austrailian Open.

The 22-year-old has carried on that momentum and enters the tournament with the same amount of clay titles as Nadal this year.

The Greek won his first-ever Masters title in Monte Carlo without dropping a set and the only two players to defeat Tsitsipas on clay this season are Nadal and Djokovic.

The 22-year-old failed to convert a match point against the King of Clay in the final of Barcelona and eventually succumbed to Nadal in three sets.

Weather conditions halted Tsitsipas’ progression in Rome as rain stopped play while the Greek led Djokovic by a set and a break and the Serbian came back the next day and produced the comeback in better weather.

However, the Greek put that behind him and dominated the Lyon Open last week to give himself the momentum going into the French Open.

Alexander Zverev

Alexander Zverev could be the dark horse to win the tournament this year. The German has consistently reached the latter stages of the Grand Slams for the past two seasons and six of his 15 career trophies have come on clay.

The German won his third Masters’ title on the clay of Madrid, significantly defeating Nadal and Thiem in straight sets en route to the trophy.

Following a heart-breaking defeat in the US Open final last year, Zverev is still looking to win his maiden slam and with the comfort of the clay beneath his feet the French Open could be where the world No 6 breaks his duck.

Roger Federer

Whenever Federer enters a tournament, he has got to be in contention of winning the trophy.

However, this year will be more difficult than any other having only played three matches in the last year-and-a-half due to two knee operations and the coronavirus pandemic.

The Swiss is arguably the greatest to have ever played the sport and the talent is unquestionable, if Federer is able to find his feet he will be a serious contender for the trophy.

The 39-year-old also has added incentive as he looks to break the Grand Slam record for a second time with a 21st Grand Slam title.

Understandably little is expected from Federer in only his second tournament back from injury. The Swiss lost on his return to tennis in the Geneva Open and with the French Open being played on his least favourite surface the task is even greater.

However, if anyone in the history of the sport was going to mark their comeback with a Grand Slam title it would be Federer. And one thing for certain is that the whole sporting world will be glad to see the icon a few more times before he eventually draws the curtains on an illustrious career.