Roland Garros has now arrived in the tennis calendar, with qualifying for the main draw currently underway.
It represents the second Grand Slam of the season, with Carlos Alcaraz and Elena Rybakina having triumphed at the Australian Open at the beginning of 2026.
Rybakina is among the French Open favorites in Paris, where Alcaraz has unfortunately been forced to withdraw because of injury.
His absence is a huge shame for the tournament, although there is some great news at Roland Garros this year, according to five-time Grand Slam champion Paul McNamee.
Is men’s tennis boring without Carlos Alcaraz?
Roland Garros praised for retaining line judges
McNamee, who won four doubles titles and one mixed doubles title, wrote on X: “Great decision by Roland Garros to retain linespeople… a ball mark on clay is visible to the naked eye, and is more accurate than the technology which is known to be imperfect with a coefficient of error… Tour events on clay ought to follow the best clay court event in the game.”
Roland Garros is the exception among all four Grand Slams in that regard, with the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open relying on Electronic Line Calling systems.
But remaining with tradition, the French Tennis Federation emphasized confidence in the high standards of human officiating.
Jannik Sinner is now a bigger favorite to win Roland Garros than Rafael Nadal ever was
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Grigor Dimitrov predicted to earn Wimbledon wildcard
Australian tennis icon McNamee has also been keeping a close eye on Roland Garros qualifying, and in particular Grigor Dimitrov.
The ATP icon, who boasts nine career titles, fell in the opening round to Jaime Faria, but he has been predicted for a much smoother run at Wimbledon.
McNamee wrote on X: “Sad to see Grigor Dimitrov lose in Qualies today… but it will get easier… I’m certain he will get a (deserved) wildcard at Wimbledon… and one Jannik Sinner will not want to see him anywhere near his section of the draw.”
Dimitrov was leading Sinner by two sets in their Wimbledon round of 16 clash in 2025, but was forced to retire at that stage due to a pectoral injury.
It was a huge shame for the Bulgarian, while the Italian recovered from that performance by going on to win the tournament.
A Wimbledon wildcard for Dimitrov would be a fitting tribute this year, but whether or not organizers will make such a kind decision remains to be seen.
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