‘Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz are the top two French Open favourites over Jannik Sinner’

Ewan West
Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz
Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz

Andy Roddick believes Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will be the top two favourites to win the 2024 French Open despite the stunning form of Jannik Sinner. 

The 2003 US Open winner thinks Sinner is “the odds-on favourite” to finish 2024 as the year-end No 1 given Djokovic’s “more inconsistent schedule”, but feels clay is the “most challenging surface” for the Italian.

Djokovic has played only two ATP tournaments in 2024 prior to this week’s Monte Carlo Masters, as well as the United Cup team competition.

The 36-year-old Serbian, who was beaten in the semi-finals of the Australian Open and the third round of the Indian Wells Open, is a three-time French Open winner. The world No 1 is the defending Roland Garros champion, having beaten Casper Ruud in the 2023 final.

READ MORE: Novak Djokovic predicts when Jannik Sinner will be world No 1 as he makes rankings confession

Alcaraz, who won his first title in eight months in Indian Wells last month, will be looking to win his maiden French Open crown to add to his US Open and Wimbledon triumphs.

The 20-year-old Spaniard, who has won seven clay-court titles, reached the semi-finals at Roland Garros last year and the quarter-finals in 2022.

Sinner, meanwhile, has lost only three matches since the 2023 US Open and has claimed three titles already in 2024, including his maiden major at the Australian Open.

The 22-year-old Italian won his only career clay-court title to date at the 2022 Croatia Open in Umag, while his best French Open result came in 2020, when he made the last eight.

Roddick, a former world No 1, lauded Sinner’s stunning form and dominant Miami Open title run, while assessing the leading contenders ahead of the clay season.

“It’s safe to say that Jannik Sinner has been the best player on Earth during the last six months. He was so dominant in Miami – beating Daniil Medvedev 6-1, 6-2 in the semis and then Grigor Dimitrov 6-3, 6-1 in the final – it was absurd,” the American told Betway.

“To find a statistical equivalent at a Masters 1000, you have to go all the way back to Rafael Nadal winning Monte Carlo in 2010. If your nearest comparison for any given achievement is Rafa in his prime on clay, then that’s pretty heady stuff.

“He’s now up to No 2 in the world and is probably the odds-on favourite to finish the year as No 1 given Novak Djokovic’s more inconsistent schedule.

“Having said that – and I say this cautiously – clay is going to be Sinner’s most challenging surface.

“What he does naturally well, bullying off the baseline, is thwarted by clay more than anything else, so he’s not going to be one of the top two favourites heading to Roland Garros and his rivals are probably welcoming the change.

“I still like Novak and I love what Carlos does on clay. I think he’s going to win a lot of French Open titles. We’ll see if that starts this year or not, but I certainly like that transition for him.

“Alexander Zverev is another who has always performed really well on clay and is underserved in that conversation that is largely dominated by four names.”

READ MORE: Novak Djokovic v Jannik Sinner v Carlos Alcaraz v Daniil Medvedev: 2024 clay-court points to defend