Jannik Sinner is a massive title favorite heading into the French Open — an even bigger favorite than Rafael Nadal was during his Roland Garros reign. That’s not to say that Sinner is Nadal. Heck, the Italian has never once lifted La Coupe des Mousquetaires. The bottom line, though, is that Sinner is seemingly without any opposition. His chief rival, Carlos Alcaraz, is out with a wrist injury. Lorenzo Musetti, Arthur Fils, Jack Draper, and Holger Rune are also gone.
The lack of competition combined with Sinner’s own spectacular form have resulted in a one-man show on the ATP Tour ever since the Australian Open. The world No. 1 has won all five Masters 1000 tournaments this season — and six in a row dating back to the 2025 Paris event.
So, can anyone challenge Sinner at Roland Garros? Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic are among the contenders, but Zverev has ever won a major and Djokovic hasn’t won one since 2023. Youngsters like Rafael Jodar and Joao Fonseca probably aren’t ready yet.
That being said, Jordar could be worth a pick if you are in the business of longshots. The 19-year-old Spaniard has a favorable draw on the opposite side from Sinner and not even in the same quarter as Djokovic. Daniil Medvedev may also have a chance. The 29-year-old Russian was the only player to take a set off Sinner at the Rome Masters. Don’t forget about Casper Ruud, either. Ruud is a two-time French Open finalist and is coming off a runner-up performance in Rome.
Here are my French Open picks starting in the quarterfinals:
Quarterfinals
Sinner over Bublik in 3
Medvedev over Tabilo in 4
Ruud over Blockx in 4
Jodar over Zverev in 4
Semifinals
Sinner over Medvedev in 3
Ruud over Jodar in 5
Final
Sinner over Ruud in 3
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.