With a record 14 French Open titles under his belt, tennis superstar Rafael Nadal has undoubtedly cemented his name into Roland Garros folklore.
The Spaniard’s exploits in the tournament have made him popular with sports bettors in Ireland and further afield, and he will inevitably attract plenty of attention again this year.
Many of the new betting sites in Ireland rate Nadal as the third favourite to win the 2023 French Open and it would be a major surprise if he fails to progress to at least the semi-finals.
However, with age and injuries gradually taking their toll on Nadal, several other players will fancy their chances of getting their hands on the trophy.
We have scoured the field for this year’s French Open to identify three players who we believe will mount a strong challenge to Nadal this year.
Novak Djokovic
While Djokovic has won 22 Grand Slams during his glittering his career, it would be fair to say that the French Open is not his favourite tournament.
The Serbian has triumphed just twice at Roland Garros (2016 & 2021) and was dumped out of the tournament by Nadal in last year’s quarter-finals.
Djokovic equalled Nadal’s tally of 22 major titles by winning the Australian Open earlier this year and would love nothing more than to surpass his rival with a victory in the French final.
The 35-year-old is capable of challenging Nadal, but we have a sneaky suspicion he may come up short if he faces one of the sport’s rising stars.
Carlos Alcaraz
Alcaraz announced his arrival at the top level in tennis by winning the US Open at Indian Wells last autumn without dropping a set.
The 19-year-old is currently the world number one ahead of Djokovic and is strongly fancied to emerge victorious at Roland Garros.
In addition to already defeating Nadal on clay, Alcaraz triumphed against Djokovic in their only previous meeting in May last year.
Many pundits have tipped him to be the next big thing in the sport and he can demonstrate his potential by claiming this year’s French Open.
Stefanos Tsitsipas
Tsitsipas received a similar level of attention to Alcaraz during his early years in professional tennis and has since won plenty of titles on the ATP Tour.
However, the 24-year-old has failed to win a Grand Slam, with runner-up finishes at the French Open (2021) and Australian Open (2023) the closest he has come to breaking his duck.
Tsitsipas is capable of beating the world’s top stars on a going day, but he also has the potential to thrown in a stinker against lower-ranked players.
If he can eradicate the inconsistencies that often blight his performances in major tournaments, Tsitsipas is more than capable of knocking Nadal off his perch at the French Open.