Ranking the Biggest Surprises at the 2015 French Open So Far
The French Open always has its share of upsets and surprises. The surface is the ultimate X-factor, where it favors some and brings others to their clay-stained knees.
The 2015 renewal of the French Open has had no shortage of said surprises, like a 2014 finalist bounced early and a beleaguered superstar who still shines bright in the City of Light.
The criteria for these surprises is purely subjective. When a simple Google search for French Open results reveals a result and there's this audible “Say what?!” That constitutes a surprise proud enough for this slideshow.
Don’t let the clay slow you down. Read on for the Week 1 surprises at Roland Garros.
No. 8: Jelena Jankovic Bows Out in Round 1
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What’s the surprise?
Jelena Jankovic exited the first round in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, to unseeded Sesil Karatantcheva.
What happened?
For the third time in four Grand Slams, Jankovic lost in the first round. She was the No. 25 seed at the French Open, and she continues her precipitous decline through the world rankings. Such is life for a 30-year-old fading star.
Jon Wertheim of SI.com wrote: “Best days are behind her, but still capable of grinding out wins.”
What now?
Jankovic lost in the first round in back-to-back Slams and next heads to Wimbledon, where she has lost in the first round three of the last four years.
No. 7: John Isner Bounced from 2nd Round
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What’s the surprise?
John Isner, the best American men’s tennis player, lost in the second round to Jeremy Chardy, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.
What happened?
Isner’s normally flammable serve was in some ways extinguished by Chardy. Isner managed 15 aces, but Chardy found ways to stay aggressive in spite of Isner’s flamethrower.
"He had a bead on my serve in the third and fourth sets," Isner said in Greg Garber’s ESPN.com story. "He started swinging really hard, and the balls were finding the court in the right spots."
What now?
Isner, the No. 16 player in the world, is the token American male pegged to reach Week 2 of Grand Slams on rank alone (though he hasn’t had much success getting to the fourth round).
When he makes his next start in a major (Wimbledon), he should fare better where grass will accentuate his strengths rather than diminish them. Despite that, he hasn’t fared better than the third round at the All England Club.
No. 6: Agnieszka Radwanska Bows Out of 1st Round
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What’s the surprise?
Agnieszka Radwanska, a former No. 2 player in the world, lost in the first round to Annika Beck, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1.
What happened?
Radwanska had just 11 winners and 19 unforced errors in what can only be dubbed as a sour effort for this Polish export.
"The clay season is not really my favourite one, and I guess it's not getting better, even when I'm really trying to do everything,” Radwanska said in Tom Allnutt’s Press Association Sport report (h/t Mail Online).
What now?
Radwanska, like many players, cares little for the clay and wants nothing more than to get on the grass.
Radwanska finds Wimbledon to be like a second home. She was the 2012 runner-up and a semifinalist in 2013, so a return to green is just what she needs to keep from sliding down the world rankings and into obscurity.
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No. 5: Sloane Stephens Sends Venus Williams Packing
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What’s the surprise?
Sloane Stephens bounced Venus Williams out of the first round and became the first player since Lindsay Davenport to beat both the Williams sisters in a Grand Slam.
What happened?
Stephens hadn’t had great success against top players in Grand Slams. Aside from beating Serena Williams in the 2013 Australian Open, Stephens lost 11 matches against top-20 talent.
That all changed in the first round while handing Venus a straight-set drubbing, 7-6 (5), 6-1.
“Going into it I knew I was going to have to just come out and be really solid and play my tennis,” Stephens said in Nick McCarvel’s USA Today story. “I did that today. She’s a great player and a great champion. I didn’t know if she was going to blow me off the court.”
What now?
Stephens needs to graduate her game to the same level Madison Keys has. As the Williams sisters begin to age out, two more young players—look no further than Keys and Stephens—could step into that vacuum.
A win over Tsvetana Pironkova in the third round could set up a fourth-round match against either Serena or Victoria Azarenka.
No. 4: No Canada—Eugenie Bouchard Loses in the 1st Round
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What’s the surprise?
The Canadian star lost in the first round to Kristina Mladenovic, No. 54 in the world, 6-4, 6-4.
What happened?
Bouchard’s loss feels even worse when you read SI.com’s Jon Wertheim’s assessment of her draw: "Giving new zest to the term sophomore slump, Bouchard should be pleased simply to win a few matches—much less return to the semifinals. That said, her draw is most kind."
What does it say when your draw is “most kind” and you lose in the first round? It was her eighth loss in nine matches.
Bouchard said in Ravi Ubha’s CNN.com story:
"I feel like I have been trying to work on what's been going wrong, and I feel like I have been making progress. So to still have matches like this is actually disappointing. But, I mean, at the same time it's just a tennis match and, you know, I need to not worry too much.
Life is still good. Everyone has highs and lows in their career. This is a little bit of a low point for me.
"
Speaking from experience, “Life is still good” is code for “Life is one crushing defeat after another.”
What now?
Bouchard went to the fourth round or farther in every Grand Slam in 2014. She was the darling of Wimbledon (where she eventually got dusted by Petra Kvitova in the final), even having the actor Jim Parsons follow her around like a gene-imprinted gosling at the All England Club.
Bouchard’s game is a bit broken, but talent is cream, and Bouchard will, in time, rise to the top.
No. 3: Jack Sock Emerges as Top American
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What’s the surprise?
Let’s start with American Jack Sock defeating No. 10 seed Grigor Dimitrov in the first round, 7-6 (9), 6-2, 6-3.
What happened?
Had you chosen an American male to advance into the third round at the French Open, Isner came to mind. Sock, making just his third appearance at Roland Garros, made it past the heavily favored Dimitrov, won his second-round match and reached the third round for the second year in a row.
He piped 30 winners to just 18 unforced errors. Sock said in Greg Garber’s ESPN.com story:
"Can I play better than that? Yeah, I think there is always room for improvement. Yeah, today was a great match for me. Things that I look to do well when I'm playing my matches I thought I did very well today: serving, forehand. Obviously most people know the things I look for the most.
"
What now?
Sock is through to the third round where he takes on Borna Coric, an 18-year-old who makes Sock at age 22 look like a seasoned pro.
The two have never met on the court, and Coric already defeated one American in Sam Querrey. This match is a tossup, but the slight edge goes to Sock.
No. 2: Rafael Nadal Looks Like He Hasn't Lost a Step
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What’s the surprise?
Two-fold: Rafael Nadal was seeded seventh (moved up to sixth with the withdrawal of Milos Raonic). And he's playing like the nine-time FO champ he is.
Yeah, Nadal is in his “worst” clay form ever, but he has won nine (!) of the past 10 French Opens. That’s one for each life of a cat.
What happened?
Nadal had five losses on clay coming into the French Open, high for someone of his transcendent clay prowess.
"(We're) always going to have the comparisons, but that's it," said Nadal in Nick McCarvel’s USA Today story. "My feelings are good. Obviously when you lose more than other years it's obvious the confidence is a little bit less. (I'm) having less bad days (now) than in the first few months (of the year)."
Then Nadal enters Roland Garros, and it’s like he was Super Mario grabbing a fire flower.
Nadal has won his first two matches with barely a Spanish sweat. He hasn’t dropped a set yet and seems to be the Nadal of old.
What now?
Nadal is answering the bell. Sure, his opponents were named Quentin Halys and Nicolas Almagro. Heard of them? Didn't think so.
But what is promising is how easily Nadal disposed of them. It’s no surprise that Nadal triumphed, but that he did so with such relative ease, given his recent form, is the surprise.
Nadal has reasserted himself as the second pick to win this tournament. He just needs to get past the favorite, Novak Djokovic, in the quarterfinals, should they meet.
No. 1: 2014 French Open Finalist Simona Halep Says 'Au Revoir'
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What’s the surprise?
Simona Halep, the 2014 French Open runner-up, lost in the second round to Mirjana Lucic-Baroni, 7-5, 6-1.
What happened?
Lucic-Baroni ranks No. 70 in the world and took down the world No. 3 and one of the favorites to contend for the title.
Ben Rothenberg of the New York Times wrote:
"Halep, the No. 3 seed, received medical attention for blisters on her right ring finger late in the first set, but seemed to struggle more with her tactics and resilience, keeping the ball comfortably in Lucic-Baroni’s strike zone in the middle of the court and allowing her to tee off.
"
Halep had just five winners to Lucic-Baroni’s 29.
What now?
Halep is still on the rise. She was a Wimbledon semifinalist in 2014 and an Australian Open quarterfinalist this year. Maybe her game has been skewed in favor of power versus finesse, but if she returns to her crafty ways, she'll contend for all four Grand Slams for the years to come.
“I just wanted to hit too strong maybe, and to change the game is not good,” Halep said in that New York Times story.
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