French Open 2015: Top Storylines to Follow Heading into Roland Garros
The uniqueness of the French Open always keeps things interesting, although the 2015 tournament might be the most exciting one in years.
With a clay surface that makes strategy and playing style much different from most other events on the tennis calendar, there are plenty of surprising results throughout the two weeks. Even though Rafael Nadal has dominated the event on the men's side, shocking trips to the quarterfinals and possibly beyond have come to be expected.
Considering Nadal's recent struggles, the entire tournament is wide open this season.
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This will create plenty of storylines to watch, but here is a look at the top things to look for in the coming days at Roland Garros.
Rafael Nadal Hard Road to Repeat
When you think about the French Open you think of Nadal. He has won this event an incredible nine times out of the last 10 years, only losing once in his career at this location.
Still, the recent struggles have led to doubt he can win again in 2015. He was knocked out by Stan Wawrinka in the quarterfinals of the Rome Masters and is just 25-9 overall this season, including just one tournament win.
For a competitor who usually dominates clay, the past month hasn't quite lived up to his standards.
As Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv noted, he will be the No. 7 seed at Roland Garros, although this might just make things more difficult for his opponents:
In the same mindset, even Roger Federer believes Nadal is still the favorite heading into the second Grand Slam of the year, via ATPWorldTour.com:
"You cannot take away the past 10 years. It’s going to be best-of-five sets. We know how tough Rafa is physically and mentally. He is the favourite still to me. Novak at this point probably has to win, with the results he's shown this year. It feels similar to 2011 when he didn't lose the whole year. Maybe Rafa isn’t having the same success as before but nevertheless that remains the situation for me. But it's all talk because in the end his racquet's going to do the talking.
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Regardless of what seed is next to his name, Nadal will be feared on the court until he loses.
Novak Djokovic Completing a Grand Slam?
You can argue all you want, but Novak Djokovic has been the best player in the sport over the past few years. He has been No. 1 in the world rankings since last July, winning two of the last three Grand Slam titles.
The problem is despite eight career major championships, Djokovic is still missing a French Open title to complete his Grand Slam. With Nadal looking off recently, this could be his chance to shine.
While clay courts haven't always been his strong suit, Christopher Clarey of the New York Times explains how he has been even better than Nadal over the past couple of seasons:
Djokovic has also been red hot while winning 22 matches in a row that spans four tournament titles. There is a reason he comes in as the odds-on favorite, according to Odds Shark.
Obviously there are always upsets in sports, but this seems like the best chance the Serbian will ever have to finally win at Roland Garros.
Chance for First-Time Winners
The last decade or so hasn't been great for those trying to join the elites of the sport. Nadal, Djokovic and Federer seemingly won everything win Andy Murray right on that brink of the top names before finally breaking through.
However, 2014 was big for new faces as both Wawrinka and Marin Cilic won their first-ever Grand Slam tournaments. With Nadal having a down year, this might be a chance for a new face to come through.
One of the top possibilities is Tomas Berdych, who is likely the best player in the world without a major championship on his resume. He is currently No. 4 in the world but has only even reached the finals of one of these events once, in 2010 at Wimbledon. Still, a good draw could see him return to this level.
Kei Nishikori is another competitor to watch for after a good start to the year which included a win on clay in Barcelona.
If you're looking for sleepers who have succeeded on this surface in the past, David Ferrer and hometown favorite Gael Monfils could be top options to surprise everyone with deep runs.
No matter what happens throughout this tournament, you can be certain it will keep fans guessing until the very end.
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