Carlos Alcaraz & Jannik Sinner only clear favorites for French Open 2025, hints tennis insider
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are the only two favourites to win the 2025 French Open men’s title, feels tennis insider Gill Gross, who claims everyone else will fall under the “surprising” category as things stand. Sinner and Alcaraz, the world number one and world number two, respectively, will go into the French Open as the top two seeds.
Sinner is making a comeback from a three-month suspension due to doping charges and has made a rollicking return to the court as he has not dropped a single set enroute to the semifinals of the ongoing Italian Open. The Italian needed just 64 minutes to beat Casper Ruud 6-0, 6-1 to reach the Masters 1000 semifinals in Rome.
Alcaraz, on the other hand, has already won two titles this year and is on course for a third. He has been in good form on clay, having reached the final of the Barcelona Open last month and has now reached the semifinals of the Italian Open. The Spaniard is building towards the 2025 French Open, where he will look to become the first man since Rafael Nadal to defend the title.
Commenting on the title chances in the men’s department, Gross posted on X (formerly Twitter):
“Nobody is gonna call Roland Garros “open” on the men’s side this year, right? There are two names who I’ll consider picking to win. Everybody else falls under “surprising” at this point.”
He then hinted that Sinner and Alcaraz are the favourites in his books.
"Crazy for Sinner to go without matches for 3 months and immediately regain the aura of invincibility he left off with. I expected him to be ready to contend for the RG trophy but thought this Rome would be a lot to deal with mentally," he wrote on X.
Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz could set up a mouthwatering Italian Open final if they can both get past their semi-final opponents. Sinner, the home favourite, faces 11th seed Tommy Paul, while Alcaraz will also take on a local lad in Lorenzo Musetti.
Carlos Alcaraz happy to be seeded No. 2 seed at 2025 French Open
Carlos Alcaraz is the reigning French Open champion, but the 22-year-old is likely to be seeded second at Roland Garros. The Spaniard, though, sees the positive side of it - we will not run into Jannik Sinner until the final.
Right after his win against Jack Draper at the Italian Open, Alcaraz was asked in the press conference for his thoughts on his seeding at the French Open, and the four-time Grand Slam champion said:
“I think it's great being (the) second seed in Roland Garros, knowing that I'm not going to see Jannik before the final, if I reach it, I think it's great. It's something that I didn't think about, honestly. Before coming here, the No. 1, it wasn't a goal. Knowing that, it's a great thing,” Carlos Alcaraz said.
A title in Italy would be the ideal way for Carlos Alcaraz to head into the French Open, and he will look to do just that, starting with the semifinal clash against Musetti on Friday, May 16.