Some big names are missing, but no shortage of storylines Nadal’s magic run leads the subplots at Roland Garros
“Security will have to do its job and be well organized so that people are safe,” he said.
Pouille, 23, was speaking at the launch of a marketing campaign for Evian mineral water. Pouille, American player Madison Keys and former world No 1 Maria Sharapova attended the event as ambassadors for the brand.
While Pouille, ranked 17 th in the world, and Keys spoke of their hopes for the Paris Open, Sharapova was refused a wild card for the tournament.
Sharapova posed for photos at the launch on the rooftop of a Paris department store, but organizers declined requests to interview her.
The 30-year-old, who won the French Open in 2012 and 2014 but was hit with a 15-month doping ban last year, had been widely expected to be fast-tracked into the year’s second Grand Slam.
After only returning to the circuit last month, Sharapova’s ranking was not high enough to warrant an automatic place in the Roland Garros main draw or in the qualifying event.
Asked if she felt there needed to be tighter security at Roland Garros in the wake of the Manchester attack, Keys said: “I am sure that the organization and everyone in charge is going to do everything they can and I trust that they know what they are doing.”
She said she “definitely” felt safe when taking part in major tournaments, adding: “I go through security just like everyone else, so I know they are doing what they can.”
Keys, who missed the Australian Open in January after wrist surgery, said her wrist is feeling much better.
The 22-year-old, who is ranked 13th in the world, said her goal for Roland Garros was “to feel good on the court and feel confident in matchplay again”.
Her long-term goals were to be “in the top five and win a grand slam”.
PARIS — Tournament organizers are confident that the absence of Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova from the French Open will just be a footnote when the story of the season’s second Grand Slam is told.
“The absence of these three stars does not weaken the tournament because Roland Garros remains an institution and the Holy Grail for a player,” French tennis historian Jean-Christophe Piffau said on Tuesday.
“The Grand Slam tournaments are anchored in the history of tennis, which is what makes them both special and prized.”
Here are the storylines likely to dominate the French Open, which starts on Sunday:
Perfect 10 for Nadal?
This year Nadal has captured a 10th Monte Carlo Masters and 10th title in Barcelona; now the great Spaniard targets what many in the sport thought was impossible — a 10th French Open title.
The champion in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014, Nadal, now 30, was written off when he lost to Novak Djokovic in the 2015 quarterfinals, ending a 39-match win streak in Paris since his stunning loss to Robin Soderling in 2009.
Last year, he played two rounds before a wrist injury forced an early withdrawal.
But he has been rejuvenated in 2017, reaching the Australian Open and Miami final and winning in Madrid for a record-tying 30th Masters title.
Djokovic and Agassi, starstruck double act
When Djokovic completed the career grand slam by winning his first Roland Garros title in 2016, the Serb held all four majors at the same time.
But the former world No 1 has — by his standards — struggled since, admitting motivation has been a problem.
There were signs of life when he reached the Rome Masters final last weekend, where his defeat was soon relegated in significance by his naming US legend Andre Agassi as his new coach.
The announcement came in the wake of Djokovic parting with long- time coach Marian Vajda earlier this month, having also ended a threeyear association with Boris Becker at the end of last season.
Eight-time major winner Agassi, who has only committed to the AFP FILE PHOTOS French Open, has never coached at such a level before and has been away from the sport for more than a decade since retiring in 2006.
The open French Open
Who will be the 2017 women’s champion? Who knows?
The champions from 2010-15 — Serena Williams (2013 and 2015), Maria Sharapova (2012 and 2014), Li Na (2011) and Francesca Schiavone (2010) — are all absent.
Defending champion Garbine Muguruza of Spain picked up a neck injury in Rome and has won just two matches on clay all season.
World No 1 Angelique Kerber’s best run was a 2012 quarterfinal spot. This clay-court season, the German lost in her first time out at Rome after retiring with a back injury after two matches in Madrid.
Simona Halep, the 2014 runnerup in Paris and winner in Madrid this year before being a losing finalist in Rome, looks the most likely champion-in-waiting.
I go through security just like everyone else, so I know they are doing what they can.” Madison Keys, American tennis star
Kvitova, Del Potro — high on emotion
Out of action since injuring her left hand fighting off a knife-wielding burglar at her home in December, two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova may yet still be a late entry into Roland Garros where she was a semifinalist in 2012.
She’d be a popular champion as would Juan Martin del Potro, the giant Argentine whose huge potential, illustrated by his 2009 US Open victory, should have been the first chapter in a Grand Slam success story.
However, an agonizing series of wrist injuries pushed him to the brink of retirement before a comeback last year saw him reach the Olympics final.
Practically unplayable on his day, Del Potro was a semifinalist in Paris in 2009 but last played the tournament in 2012, losing a two-set lead to go down to Roger Federer in the quarterfinals. He’s currently ranked No 33.
Maria Sharapova’s comeback from a doping ban will include an appearance at the Rogers Cup in August after the former world No 1 was granted a wild card by the organizers of the Toronto tournament on Tuesday.
Sharapova returned to the court last month after serving a 15-month suspension for testing positive for a banned substance at last year’s Australian Open, and the Russian has so far been handed three wild cards to play WTA events.
Sharapova reached the semifinals in her return to the tour in Stuttgart but was surprisingly denied a wild card for the French Open with organizers uneasy about fast-tracking her into a tournament she has won twice.
Considered one of the biggest names in tennis, Sharapova will attempt to qualify for Wimbledon in July and has been invited to play in the Toronto event that serves as one of the main warm-up tourna- ments for the US Open.
Rogers Cup tournament director Karl Hale called Sharapova a “fan favorite,” while the 30-year-old superstar said she was keen to compete at an event she last played in 2014.
“I’m really looking forward to coming back to Canada,” Sharapova said. “This is one of the biggest events of the year and I hope to play my best tennis that week.”