2022 French Open men’s singles draw, results

Rafael Nadal has his work cut out to win a record-extending 14th French Open title.

Nadal, seeded fifth at Roland Garros, is the joint third favorite behind defending champion Novak Djokovic and Spanish 19-year-old phenom Carlos Alcaraz. Nadal, who could play top-ranked Djokovic in the quarterfinals and Alcaraz in the semifinals, has the same odds as Stefanos Tsitsipas, according to PointsBet Sportsbook.

The 35-year-old Spaniard is bidding to break 1972 French Open champion Andres Gimeno‘s record as the oldest singles champion in Paris. But he most overcome persistent foot pain that impacted his lead-up, which for the first time since 2015 included no titles in the early spring clay-court season.

FRENCH OPEN DRAWS: Men | Women | TV Schedule

Enter Djokovic, who returned from his Australian Open ordeal to win the most recent significant clay tournament in Rome last week. The Serb bids to match Nadal’s male record 21 Grand Slam singles titles.

Then there’s Alcaraz, who is the same age as Nadal was when Nadal won his first French Open. Alcaraz won his last two tournaments, including beating Nadal and Djokovic on back-to-back days on May 6-7. He would be the first teenage man to win a major since Nadal’s first conquest in Paris in 2005.

Roger Federer, 40, hasn’t played since Wimbledon after knee surgeries and is not expected to return to Grand Slam tennis this year, if at all.

Other contenders include the Greek Tsitsipas (opposite half of the draw from Nadal, Djokovic and Alcaraz), who blew a two-set lead on Djokovic in last year’s final, and Olympic gold medalist Alexander Zverev of Germany (in Alcaraz’s quarter).

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via RolandGarros.com

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