As every year from the end of May to the beginning of June, France and Paris host a Grand Slam Tennis tournament: Roland-Garros. Even though the last French victory dates back almost 40 years, optimism is in the air, as several French players have shown promising performances, particularly those from Nice.
This 121st edition of Roland-Garros began in a special context for French tennis. Indeed, several renowned French players are playing their last matches as professional tennis players, such as Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, and also the 37-year-old from Nice, Gilles Simon.
For his last Grand Slam, Gilles Simon clearly wants to finish on a high note. Having won only one match in 2022, he managed to qualify for the third round (for the first time since 2018) by narrowly defeating the Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta in the tournament opener, and then the American Steve Johnson in 3 sets (7-5, 6-1, 7-6). With this victory over Johnson, Simon can leave with his head held high as he achieved his 500th career victory. The Frenchman will face the Croatian Marin Cilic, ranked 20th in the ATP ranking.
Among the women, Nice was also well represented. Like Gilles Simon, Alizรฉe Cornet also started this 121st Roland-Garros perfectly. With a swift victory (6-2 / 6-0) against the Japanese Misaki Doi, the experienced 32-year-old player then defeated the world No. 13 and former tournament winner in 2017, the Lithuanian Jelena Ostapenko, in three sets (6-0, 1-6, 6-2). To reach the fourth round, she will need to beat the young Chinese player Zheng Qinwen.
Alizรฉe Cornet is not the only woman from Nice to have made a strong impression in Paris. Indeed, Diane Parry is the sensation of this edition. At only 19 years old, the Niรงoise made a breakthrough in the tennis world with a victory in the tournament opener against the defending champion, Barbora Krejฤรญkovรก. After struggling in the first set (1-6), Parry turned the tables to dominate the Czech (6-2 and 6-3). In the second round, she showed no nerves in beating the Colombian Camila Osario in two sets (6-3).
Nice thus plays a major role in the success of French tennis players at this Roland-Garros. Of the 5 French men/women qualified for the third round, 3 are from the Cรดte d’Azur capital! Nonetheless, even though these results are seen as a great local satisfaction, at the national level, the consistently weak performance of French players is lamented. Indeed, this edition presents the third worst record of the past ten years.
