The 2026 French Open is officially underway, with several high-profile first-round matchups already drawing attention ahead of the two-week tournament at Roland Garros in Paris.
This year’s event begins Sunday, May 24, and runs through Sunday, June 7. The tournament features some major storylines, including Coco Gauff defending her women’s singles title and world No. 1 Jannik Sinner chasing the career Grand Slam.
The biggest absence from the tournament is the defending men’s champion, Carlos Alcaraz. The world No. 2 withdrew from the French Open while continuing to recover from a lingering wrist injury. Alcaraz also pulled out of Wimbledon earlier this season.
With Alcaraz out, Sinner enters the tournament as one of the clear favorites after dominating the ATP Tour this year.
Jannik Sinner Headlines Men’s French Open Draw
Sinner will open his French Open campaign against French wildcard Clement Tabur, according to the tournament’s official website.
The Italian star enters Roland Garros on a 29-match winning streak after winning ATP Masters 1000 titles at Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Madrid and Rome. A title in Paris would complete the career Grand Slam for the 24-year-old.
If Sinner advances, he could face Great Britain’s Jacob Fearnley in the second round. Fearnley first has to get through Argentina’s Juan Manuel Cerundolo.
Novak Djokovic also landed one of the tournament’s tougher opening-round matchups.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion will face towering Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the opening round. The 22-year-old enters the tournament with home-crowd support and one of the biggest serves on tour.
No. 2 seed Alexander Zverev will begin against France’s Benjamin Bonzi. Arthur Fils also landed on Zverev’s side of the draw, setting up potential challenges later in the tournament.
For Great Britain, Cameron Norrie enters as the No. 20 seed and opens against Paraguay’s Adolfo Daniel Vallejo.
Coco Gauff Returns to Roland Garros as Defending Champion
On the women’s side, Gauff returns to Paris looking to defend the title she won last year.
The American star opens the tournament against fellow American Taylor Townsend.
Speaking during the Roland Garros draw ceremony, Gauff reflected on finally winning the French Open in 2025.
“My mind definitely went blank,” Gauff said. “Since I was little I always said that if I win at Roland Garros I wouldn’t fall on the ground as I didn’t want to get clay in my hair but I was so relieved that the match was over, because it was like three hours, so I just fell on the ground. It was disbelief.”
Gauff also addressed whether she feels prepared to defend her title after a strong clay-court season.
“Yeah [I’m ready]. If I wasn’t ready I wouldn’t be here,” she said. “I’m as ready as you can be, I feel like I had a good tournament in Rome and I’ve had similar preparation to last year, this year so I feel really ready.”
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka opens against Spain’s Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, while Elena Rybakina will face Slovenia’s Veronika Erjavec.
Four-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek begins against Australian wildcard Emerson Jones. Italian Open champion Elina Svitolina will take on Hungary’s Anna Bondar.
Emma Raducanu will face Argentina’s Solana Sierra in the first round after previously withdrawing from a scheduled meeting with Sierra in Rome because of illness.
Key Dates for the 2026 French Open Schedule
The 2026 French Open officially began Sunday, May 24, at Roland Garros in Paris and runs through Sunday, June 7.
Here are the key dates for the tournament:
May 24-26: Women’s and men’s singles first round
May 27-28: Women’s and men’s singles second round
June 2-3: Women’s and men’s singles quarterfinals
June 4: Women’s singles semifinals
June 5: Men’s singles semifinals
June 6: Women’s singles final
June 7: Men’s singles final
How to Watch the 2026 French Open
Turner Sports will handle most of the French Open coverage in the United States this year.
TNT and truTV will carry television broadcasts throughout the tournament, while every match from Roland Garros will stream live on HBO Max.
French Open 2026: Notable First-Round Draws, Schedule & How to Stream Roland Garros