Roland Garros 2022 was a collage of fascinating moments highlighted by drama, teenage sensations making their mark, and some resilient performances from the eventual champions. Let’s look back at what was an eventful fortnight in Paris, culminating in titles for European players in all professional and junior events.
Teen Stars Shine
★ Carlos Alcaraz achieved his best Slam result ever after a stellar clay court season, winning Barcelona and Madrid. He fell to Zverev at the quarterfinal stage with the German giving the Spaniard some payback for his one-sided loss in the Madrid final.
★ Holger Rune is another recent European Junior Champion who, until recently, has been slightly overshadowed by the exploits of Alcaraz. Hot on the heels of his first ATP tournament win, the Dane posted his own personal best at a Slam, falling in the quarters to eventual finalist Casper Ruud.
★ Cori Gauff, another former #1 on the Tennis Europe Junior Tour, made her Grand Slam final debut at the age of just 18. Gauff, who trains at the Mouratouglou Academy in France, has a special affinity with France and its people and thanked the crowd for their support: “Even when I was down you guys were cheering me on and that means a lot.” This is surely the first of many Slam finals for the popular American, and she backed it up with a run to the doubles final.
★ Gabriel Debru (pictured) won the Junior Boys’ singles title. A three-time champ on the #TEJT, the 16-year old beat Belgian Gilles Arnaud Bailly 7-6(5) 6-3 in the final to become the 14th home champion on the boys' event.
★ Lucie Havlickova won the girls’ singles title. The Czech was a prolific player on the #TEJT posting some phenomenal results, appearing in 20 singles and doubles finals, winning 14. In Paris, she was too strong for Solana Sierra (ARG), winning the final 6-3 6-3.
★ Havlickova teamed up again with former Junior Tour partner, Sara Bejlek (CZE) to win the girls’ doubles title. They beat Nikola Bartunkova (CZE) and Celine Naef (SUI) 6-3 6-3. Bejlek and Bartunkova were also the singles semifinalists.
★ Edas Butvilas (LTU) and Mili Poljicak (CRO) made it a clean sweep for Europeans in the junior events by winning the boys’ doubles. They beat the Peruvian pairing of Gonzalo Bueno and Ignacio Buse 6-4 6-0.
★ The 2019 14&U Junior Masters champion, Dino Prizmic, made it to the boys’ semis, falling to the eventual champ Debru.
★ Peter Benjamin Privara, the 16&U player of the year in 2019, was Debru’s victim in the quarterfinals.
★ Nine-time #TEJT champ Nikola Daubnerova was a singles quarterfinalist in the girls’ draw, as was Mirra Andreeva, a winner of 16 titles on our junior tour.
All About Iga
2020 champion Iga Swiatek came into this event with the weight of expectation on her shoulders. She handled it with the grace, poise and elegance of a champion and underlined her status as the world's best player.
- She now boasts a 35-match winning streak, having last lost in February
- Doha, Indian Wells, Miami, Stuttgart and Rome were the other tournaments she won on route to Paris
- Lesia Tsurenko, Alison Riske, Danka Kovinic, Qinwen Zheng, Jessica Pegula, Daria Kasatkina and Cori Gauff were the players left in Swiatek’s wake at Roland Garros.
- Iga has now won her second slam, and joins Muguruza, Azarenka, Kerber, Halep, Kvitova and Osaka as the only players in the top 50 with 2 or more slams to their names
- She beat Gauff 6-1 6-3 in the final and after the match professed, “I’m pretty happy that every piece has come together. Two years ago winning was amazing, and this time I worked hard, and so did everyone, to get me here, even though it was pretty tough.”
Rafa Revels in #22
After last year’s disappointing loss to Novak Djokovic in the semifinals, Rafael Nadal was able to exact his revenge over his old foe in a thrilling four-set quarterfinal. After a whopping three hours and without yet having finished the second set, Nadal advanced to his 14th final after Alexander Zverev retired injured in the semis. In the final Casper Ruud was unable to halt the Nadal juggernaut, as his childhood idol made history yet again. The Norwegian could only praise Nadal after the match “we all know what a champion you are and today I got to feel how it feels to play against you in a Slam final - it’s not easy and I’m not the only victim!”
- Nadal has claimed his 14th Roland Garros title and remains undefeated in finals in Paris
- He has now won his 22nd major, equalling Steffi Graf’s total, poetically at the same tournament where she won her 22nd. He moves further ahead of contemporaries Djokovic and Roger Federer, and is one behind Serena Williams’ 23 major titles
- Nadal has brought his head-to-head with Djokovic to within equalling distance: 29-30
- In what seemed to many to be a fait accompli, Nadal took the first two sets before running away with the third to post a 6-3 6-3 6-0 win in 2 hours and 18 minutes, shorter than his two-set semi which was cut short!
- “Playing here means a lot … I just want to say merci beaucoup a tout le monde à Paris. It’s incredible to play here with your support.”
Doubles Results
Men’s doubles final:
Marcelo Arevalo (ESA) & Jean Julien Rojer (NED) d. Ivan Dodig (CRO) & Austin Krajicek (USA) 6-7(4) 7-6(5) 6-3
Women’s doubles final:
Caroline Garcia (FRA) & Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) d. Cori Gauff (USA) & Jessica Pegula (USA) 2-6 6-3 6-2
Mixed doubles final:
Ena Shibahara (JAP) & Wesley Koolhof (NED) d. Ulrikke Eikeri (NOR) & Joran Vliegen (BEL) 7-6(5) 6-2