The Weekly Recap: Pro Tennis Around the Globe [French Open Edition]

What happened in pro tennis around the globe this past week? It was all about Roland Garros! We can't recap everything but let's review a few key highlights (see below) in order to catch you up on the action... 

Swiatek Wins Roland Garros...Again

Source: © On.

It's safe to say that Iga Swiatek is more than comfortable sliding about the pristine clay of Roland Garros as she is now a four time winner. The 23-year-old had an interesting road to victory, to say the least. Blasting past her opponents, Swiatek defeated Leolia Jeanjean, Marie Bouzkova, Anastasia Potapova, Marketa Vondrousova, Coco Gauff, and her final opponent, Jasmine Paolini, all in very comfortable straight sets. But her second round was when it got tricky. Facing Naomi Osaka, Swiatek won the first set, lost the second, and was down a devastating score of 2-5 in the third. It's never over until it's over. Swiatek, keeping a cool head, won that match, and the rest of the entire tournament was history.

Defeating Paolini 6-2, 6-1, she's now a five time grand slam champion in total, a lone US Open victory joining the rapidly growing list of French Opens. And in fact, her domination at this tournament, especially in the final, seemed relatively effortless for the Pole. In fact, she only served 62% first serves in, winning only 69% of first serve points against Paolini. That just goes to show how good her baseline game is, the fact that her serve stats are mediocre yet she's able to completely demolish whatever victim stands across the net. And she won a whopping 57 points compared to the Italian's 31. She's just too good. 

Alcaraz Is the French Open Champion

Photo credit: Corinne Dubreuil for ATP Tour.

Carlos Alcaraz just keeps getting better. Despite being plagued with inconsistency in recent results, when the moment matters, the Spaniard shows up. Once again, he navigates a tough sea full to the brim with worthy opponents, sending home Jasper De Jong, Sebastian Korda, Felix Auger-Aliassime, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Jannik Sinner, and finally, Alexander Zverev. Some of these battles were easy, some weren't, especially his final two challenges.

In a match we had all been waiting for, Alcaraz stepped onto the court against the Italian Jannik Sinner on Friday. Sinner, already destined the climb to #1 on Monday, looked like this was his match. Nope! In a tight five sets, the Spaniard escaped a flight home empty-handed. But the tournament wasn't done yet.

Next up was Zverev, who had been lurking on the other half of the draw, quietly doing his business all week. And though an unfair call in the final set gave Alcaraz the edge, the match could have gone a lot differently, but the Spaniard was able to keep his dreams alive. The final score was 6-3, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2. While the match was up and down at moments, it was nothing shy of uneventful. Zverev broke six times, while Alcaraz broke nine times, and despite the rocky moments, the Spaniard kept his cool while his opponent had a few spats with the umpire about line calls and disturbing spectators. It's fair to say neither played A+ tennis, or their best games, but Alcaraz's strong mental side and discipline was able to run him across the finish line. 

A Florida Native Is Coming Home With A Trophy

Source: New Balance.

Some people say she's better at doubles than singles. Maybe that's true. Because Coco Gauff, Delray Beach native, will fly home with a massive silver trophy to add to her collection, one that she won with doubles partner Katerina Siniakova at Roland Garros. Typically we see Coco playing with Jessica Pegula and Siniakova playing with Storm Hunter. Despite this, the two made an excellent team, navigating their way for a couple of difficult matches, especially their semi-final. But their final battle went smoothly. Facing Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini, Gauff and Siniakova won 7-6, 6-3, a nice ending after a sad exit for Gauff in singles. While it may not be as sweet as the US Open, Gauff can't be feeling too bad right now.

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Written by Will Turvey.