Steve Johnson names Roland Garros favourite between Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina
· Yahoo Sports
With the clay-court season now in full swing, some of the top players on the WTA Tour are starting to focus on Roland Garros.
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Gauff is aiming to defend her title this year after beating Aryna Sabalenka in last year’s final.
This time around, Sabalenka is looking to capture her fifth major title and her first at Roland Garros.
In addition to Gauff and Swiatek, Elena Rybakina has also emerged as a strong contender following her impressive run in Stuttgart, where she picked up another title.
Sabalenka tipped as the Roland Garros favourite, says Steve Johnson
Photo by Rich Storry/Getty ImagesJohn Isner, the former Miami Open winner, opened up the Nothing Major discussion by saying he doesn’t see Coco Gauff as the favourite.
“I don’t think you can say Coco,” said Isner. “I know she is the defending champion.”
Johnson agreed with Isner, putting forward Sabalenka as his choice over Rybakina.
“Sabalenka is the favourite,” Johnson said. “She has made the finals of every Slam. She is number one.”
“But [Rybakina] is great on any surface. Her serve is phenomenal; she can hit through anyone.”
“If there is a slow day at the French, which can be really slow, that is not going to help her. But if it’s a hot day, it plays faster than some hard courts. It is tough to move. So it depends on the weather.
Dinara Safina claimed the first-ever WTA title at the Madrid Open in 2009
Dinara Safina, a former world number one, became the first WTA champion at the Madrid Open back in 2009.
Safina was the top seed that year and began her run by beating future two-time Grand Slam winner Na Li.
She followed that up with wins over Lucie Safarova, Alona Bondarenko and Patty Schnyder to reach the final.
In the title match, she beat Caroline Wozniacki – who would later win an Australian Open – in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4.
This made them the first brother-sister duo to both win titles in Madrid. After her win there, she also picked up a title in Rome before reaching another French Open final.
Kuznetsova came out on top 6-4, 6-2 against Safina. It was her second straight appearance in the Roland Garros final after losing to Ana Ivanovic a year earlier. That same year – 2008 – Kuznetsova went on to beat Serena Williams for her first major trophy at the US Open.
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