French Open 2013: Ranking Most Dominant Players at Roland Garros This Year

Many contenders at the 2013 French Open have looked unstoppable at times and so dominant that no one could stop them. But who has been the best at Roland Garros?

There are plenty of ways to determine the most dominant player in this year’s tournament. I think that one fair way to look at things is by analyzing which player won the highest percentage of games  throughout their matches.

If a player is dominant, he or she should be winning a lot of games and by large margins. Winning a set 6-0 is obviously worth more than winning 6-4, for example. But since not everyone has had an equal run through the tournament, I did take strength of schedule into account—but not many players have had tough schedules.

So who has been the most dominant player at the French Open this year?

3. David Ferrer, No. 4 Seed

Games Won Percentage: 71.6 Percent

Most Dominant Victory

Ferrer cruised through the first four rounds of the tournament and one would assume that he would face a pretty tough opponent entering the quarterfinal. That wasn’t the case, though. Tommy Robredo, the No. 32 seed, was very lucky to even make it that far.

Robredo didn’t last long against Ferrer in the quarters. He lost the first set 6-2. The next two were even more brutal, as he lost each by a score of 6-1. Losing just four games in three sets is an impressive feat, especially in a quarterfinal matchup.

What Helped His Case

Ferrer has been very sound throughout his run to the French Open semifinals. He has yet to need three sets to defeat an opponent, and only lost double-digit games in a match on two occasions. In the other three matches, opponents have failed to win more than six games against the Spaniard.

What Hurt His Case

If I were ranking contenders solely on games won percentage, Ferrer would No. 1. But I didn’t think it was that fair to do things that way. Ferrer is only No. 3 on this list because he hasn’t really had a tough opponent yet. He didn’t meet a ranked opponent until after the third round. Still, he’s defeated No. 23 and No. 32. That’s not very impressive.

2. Novak Djokovic, No. 1 Seed

Games Won Percentage: 63.2 Percent

Most Dominant Victory

After a somewhat close match in the opening round at the French Open, Djokovic wanted to make quick work of his next opponent, Guido Pella. It took five sets for Pella to make it to the second round. He didn’t win five games against Djokovic.

The world No. 1 defeated Pella 6-2, 6-0, 6-2. Pella didn’t have an answer for anything that Djokovic threw at him. There was no way that Djokovic was going to lose the match. Pella wasn’t going to win even if he played his best and Djokovic played his worst.

What Helped His Case

The No. 1 at Roland Garros, Djokovic has played some worthy opponents. He’s played ranked opponents the last three rounds, defeating Tommy Haas in the quarterfinals, Philipp Kohlschreiber in the fourth round and Grigor Dimitrov in the third round. Like I said, playing ranked opponents will help a lot in these rankings. He also had a better games won percentage than Rafael Nadal, who had a tough schedule, but didn't win enough games to top Djokovic.

What Hurt His Case

Despite making it to the semifinals, Djokovic has really only “dominated” one opponent thus far and that was in the second round. It took the world No. 1 four sets to advance to the quarterfinals and he lost at least 14 games in three of his matches. His game’s won percentage was the second-lowest of any male still alive at Roland Garros.

1. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, No. 6 Seed

Games Won Percentage: 66.0 Percent

Most Dominant Victory

The first time Tsonga ever played at the French Open, he was knocked out in the opening round. He has made it at least to the second round in every appearance since. He kept that streak alive this year with a victory over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia.

Bedene never really stood a chance against Tsonga. Tsonga overpowered him time after time, winning 18-of-27 games in the match. Bedene was lucky enough to win seven games, but there was no doubt that Tsonga wasn’t going to dominate him.

What Helped His Case

Throughout the French Open, Tsonga has done well in every match and even against some worthy opponents. He’s only lost double-digit games twice thus far and has yet to lose a set to an opponent. He’s only played two ranked opponents, but defeating No. 2 Roger Federer relatively easily went a long way.

What Hurt His Case

Well, not much. I could’ve penalized Tsonga more because he didn’t have the best games won percentage, but he was No. 2 in that category. I also could’ve taken strength of schedule out of play and his victory over Federer would’ve been just like any other victory. Weighting either of those differently would’ve taken him out of the No. 1 spot.