11 months ago. Paris, France

Naomi's silence, Tsitsipas' chance: Opening day clashes at French Open 2021

#FrenchOpen #NaomiOsaka #StefanosTsitsipas

The round one clashes on Sunday will see several top faces in both men's and women's division take to the court
Current world number two in women's singles, Naomi Osaka will face Romania's Patricia Maria Tig
Stefanos Tsitsipas is one of the top contenders for the French Open title in 2021

The ongoing French Open will be serving up a series of intense clashes on Sunday in both Men’s and Women’s Singles division, as stars such as Stefanos Tsitsipas, Naomi Osaka, Gregor Dimitrov and a set of other players get ready to face their first-round challenges in Rolland Garros.

1. Naomi Osaka: Japanese tennis star and former US as well as Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka has caused quite a stir already in the French Open, opting for a code of silence and deciding to not appear in any press conferences. In the clay-court, Osaka on Sunday will be facing Romania's Patricia Maria Tig, world number 63 and winner of the Istanbul clay court title in 2020.

Also read: Novak Djokovic warms up for Roland Garros with Belgrade title

2. Stefanos Tsitsipas: Men’s world number five, Tsitsipas will be starting off his French Open journey this year against France’s Jeremy Chardy. The Greek sensation, however, might have a difficult opening day against Chardy, who views himself as an underdog despite acquiring 16 clay court wins this season.

The Greek, who is a winning prospect this season, also has the advantage of being on the opposite half of the draw than Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, as well as their 58 total Grand Slam titles.

Also read: Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic eye history as French Open settles down for quiet night in

3. Victoria Azarenka: Former world number one in the women’s singles division, veteran Victoria Azarenka will be facing off against Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova in a battle of former champions. Azarenka, 15th seed in the division, will be expectedly be roughing it out against Kuznetsova, the 2009 champion in Paris.

4. Dominic Thiem: Two-time Roland Garros finalist and former world number three, Thiem arrives in Paris with work in his hands. Still in search of his clay court form, fourth seed Thiem will take on Austrian Pablo Andujar, who will expectedly be in high spirits after defeating Roger Federer in Geneva two weeks back.

Also read: Iga Swiatek serene as questions linger over French Open rivals

5. Alexander Zverev: Sixth seed in the tournament and winner of the Mutua Madrid Open that concluded earlier this month, it is going to be an all-German clash between Alexander Zverev and Oscar Otte, as the latter looks forward to his first tour-level win of 2021.

6. Angelique Kerber: 26th seed in the tournament, Germany’s Angelique Kerber has already played three clay-tournaments this season and will be entering her fourth. Having reached the quarter finals of the 2018 French Open finals, she will be facing Anhelina Kalinina, who is set to make her debut in the main draw of French Open in 2021.

#FrenchOpen #NaomiOsaka #StefanosTsitsipas #DominicThiem #AlexanderZverev

Naomi's silence, Tsitsipas' chance: Opening day clashes at French Open 2021

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