French Roast! Roland Garros is a test of skill and stamina on clay

Not only does the Roland Garros event demand strong legs but also strong arms and lungs to keep the power going hour after hour, writes Sunil Gavaskar

What gladiator-like contests we have been seeing in the French Open tennis championship! 

This clay-court tournament is perhaps the hardest to win among the four majors as the rallies are long and it tests not just the skill and stamina of the players but also their temperament. 

After a long rally, it must be extraordinarily tough to lift yourself up mentally for the next point especially if the earlier point has been lost. Not only does this event demand strong legs but also strong arms and lungs to keep the power going hour after hour. 

The second week has been incredible with most matches going the distance and swaying like a yo-yo from one player to the other. Truly, this is a special tournament and should be the decider for the best player in the world for the simple reason that the other majors are all played on faster surfaces where a player with a good serve will win more often than not. 

How many aces do you see in the French Open? Not even a quarter of what we see in the other majors and that’s why it should be the tournament that decides the best players in the world, for it’s not just fast serve but a good all-round game that wins you points here. 

The GOAT

Is Rafa Nadal with his 13 wins here the GOAT especially now that he is level with Roger Federer on 20 major titles? Federer, by the way, has only one French Open title to his name. 

Novak Djokovic has the chance to get closer if he wins (this is being written on Saturday) and also gives himself the chance of achieving the Grand Slam by winning all four majors in one calendar year since he has won the Australian Open at the start of the year. 

Speaking of majors, today in the time of diversity, equality and BLM, the question needs to be asked why the majors in tennis are only in four countries and in golf only in two countries. Why not a major in the Middle East, Asian and African continent? 

Two majors, please

If diversity and equality is the name of the game today in all walks of life then why not in these two elite sports? Surely, adding two majors instead of some other ordinary tournaments again mainly in the four countries mentioned will add to the competitive element and help decide the best player in the world that year. 

Of course, I am not holding my breath that it will happen, certainly not during my lifetime but if a conversation can be started for not restricting the majors to only four countries and be a bit more inclusive of the rest of the tennis and golf-playing world then maybe we could see majors in Asia, Africa and the Middle East sooner rather than later. Let’s see.

Also Read: French Open: Djokovic stuns Nadal, sets up summit clash against Tsitsipas

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