Roland Garros is rapidly approaching, and Elina Svitolina has hit the ground running at the perfect time.
Svitolina is the new Italian Open champion, having battled past Coco Gauff in a thrilling final in Rome, where she also overcame Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina.
She will soon turn her focus to Roland Garros, where she can undoubtedly be considered among the dark horses to lift the trophy.
But Svitolina isn’t the only such WTA player, with four dark horses now emerging as the days rapidly count down to the clay-court Grand Slam.
How would you now rate Aryna Sabalenka’s chances of winning the French Open on a scale of 1-10?
Elina Svitolina
As mentioned, Svitolina simply cannot be ignored following her dream venture at the Italian Open in Rome.
She clearly has the game to beat the top WTA players right now, while her confidence will be at an all-time high thanks to her brilliant run.
Svitolina is now 8-0 in clay-court finals in her career, and is 8-2 on clay-court surfaces for her 2026 season so far.
Marta Kostyuk
Svitolina isn’t the only Ukrainian woman really impressing this season, with Marta Kostyuk also in top form at this key stage of the clay-court swing.
Kostyuk won the Madrid Open earlier this month for her first WTA 1000 title, having also lifted the trophy in Rouen shortly before.
She will definitely be a player that the rest of the field will want to avoid early on at Roland Garros, with the world number 15 on a real high right now.
Sorana Cirstea
Another player with superb momentum on clay right now is Sorana Cirstea, who is saving some of her best tennis for the final stages of her career.
The Romanian is retiring at the end of the season, but is clearly aiming to go out with a bang thanks to her recent efforts on clay.
Cirstea beat Aryna Sabalenka, Jelena Ostapenko and Linda Noskova before losing to Coco Gauff in Rome, having also claimed doubles success in Linz last month.
Who is your favorite player on the WTA Tour right now?
Mirra Andreeva
It was teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva who clinched the singles title in Linz, representing her second WTA title of 2026.
The Russian also reached the Madrid final, and boasts superb comeback wins over Iga Swiatek and Jelena Ostapenko on clay this season.
While patience is required with the 19-year-old, Andreeva is absolutely one to watch at Roland Garros, where she reached the semifinals in 2024.
WTA number one Sabalenka is the Roland Garros favorite, but it looks like anything could happen in Paris given what has transpired throughout the thrilling season so far.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
