Tennis: The Australian Open starts, 27 French people in qualifying!
Published on January 8, 2024 at 6:50 a.m.
Holder of a Master’s degree in sports journalism, I fell in love with tennis since childhood and have always loved reading the great stories of this sport. Today, I want to tell them about them, take full advantage of my passion and be as close as possible to the aces of the circuit.
The first major event of the year, the Australian Open opens its doors this Monday with the qualifying tournament, an unmissable competition for those outside the top 100 and need to validate their ticket. This year, 27 French players will try to make their way to the big picture, a very large contingent which inevitably leaves a lot of places to be taken.
There are not many countries on the circuit that can boast of having approximately the same number of players at the start of a draw in Grand Slam. Indeed, 17 French men and 10 French women will start their adventure in the Major from this Monday, a first day marked by the postponement of matches for several hours due to rain. A look back at those who will defend the colors of France during the 2024 edition!
Largest contingent since 2005
The package of Rafael Nadal allowed to Quentin Halys, the original number 1 seed in qualifying, to qualify for the main draw before entering the fray. This therefore reduces the number to 17 French players competing for this pre-tournament, still the largest contingent in Grand Slam since the 2005 edition of theAustralian Open (19 players) if we exclude Roland-Garros since many wild cards are distributed each year. Among them, we find well-known faces, such as Benoît Paire, Hugo Gaston or Pierre-Hugues Herbert, but also young shoots such as Giovanni Mpetshi PerricardTerence Atmane et Titouan Droguet.
Lots of tricolor chances
Many players will try this Monday to launch their Australian Open in the best possible way. The draw was jokey with some, lenient for others. Among the players we know well, Enzo Couacaudthe only one to have taken a set at Novak Djokovic last year, will begin his tournament against his compatriot Kyrian Jacquet. The highlight match on Monday will also be a match between French: Benoît Paire will challenge Jules Marie for his first challenge in Grand Slam apart from Roland-Garros. With all these matches, we can hope to have a few more players in the big picture.
Girls to smile again?
Women’s tennis has been suffering a little more for a while and it will be very difficult to achieve success on a par with the men. There will be 10 of them to try their luck starting with Jessica Ponchet facing the Thai Tararudee, Fiona Ferro against Sramkova or Harmony Tan against Zavatska. The task will not be easy for Séléna Janicijevicthe young 21-year-old player, who will face her young compatriot Carole Monnet. Alice Robb et Margaux Rouvroytwo sensations from the qualifications of Roland-Garros in 2023, will also have a lot to do from the start. Suffice to say that if one of them managed to pass this stage, it would already be a success.
2024-01-08 05:50:00
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