Match of the Day Session: Champion and contender

In-form No.26 seed Hailey Baptiste has a tough test against former champion Barbora Krejcikova. Alexander Zverev, Taylor Fritz and Emma Raducanu are also in action on Day 1.

The last person any Grand Slam champion wants to face in the opening round is a keen, young rising star in the form of her life. But that is what faces Krejcikova on Sunday. The champion here in 2021 and at Wimbledon two years ago, the Czech has been hampered by injuries for the past 18 months – a back issue last year and a thigh problem that cost her three months of this season. That is not the sort of foundation to rely upon when taking on the likes of Baptiste.

The American is seeded at a Grand Slam for the first time in her life, thanks in no small part to her sensational run in Madrid where she powered into the semifinals, taking out Aryna Sabalenka along the way. That propelled her to a career-high ranking of No.25 (she is No.26 at the moment) and earned her that seeded slot.

"It's my first Slam being seeded, so that's pretty exciting,” she told The National newspaper. “You know, you're not so much of an underdog anymore. And it's one of my favourite Slams. The red clay I really, really love, so I'm super excited. And, yeah, I have a different kind of confidence coming in this year because I have had some success here and I'm at a career high, so I'm really looking forward to it."

Her best result at any major is reaching the fourth round here last year. Twelve months on and with the wind in her sails, anything could be possible. She won their last encounter two years ago in Wuhan; Krejcikova needs to go back to 2019 for her only win over the American, back when Baptiste was a teenager and still learning her trade.

By contrast to her high-flying opponent, Krejcikova is easing along the comeback path. Her return to the courts after that thigh injury came in Rome and ended in the second round against Sabalenka. From there, she dropped down to a WTA 125 event and lost in the final. No matter, she was still beaming when she got her runner’s-up salver. It was another step forward, albeit a small one. If she can win on Sunday, that would be a giant step.

Court Philippe-Chatrier, second match

Alexander Zverev (2) v Benjamin Bonzi

Zverev is a man caught between two generations. He began competing in the era of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic and now finds himself in the age of Sinner and Alcaraz. The change from one era to the other was seamless and left no time for the tall German to claim his first Grand Slam title. It is not for the want of effort – he has kept himself in contention, snapping at the heels of the champions, but to no avail.

This year, without Alcaraz, he finds himself as the No.2 seed and at least he is finally feeling fit and free of the back pain that had plagued him for months. He has never played Bonzi before but ranked 95 places above him at No.3 in the world, Zverev should get his campaign off to a flying start.

Court Suzanne-Lenglen, third match

Taylor Fritz (7) v Nishesh Basavareddy

Fritz is, in some ways, stepping into the unknown. Thanks to a knee injury, he has only been able to play one match since mid-March but that was last week in Geneva and even if he lost to Alexei Popyrin, his knee held up well. So far, so good. “The positive is my knee felt good last week playing,” he said. “[I’m] a bit rusty, obviously, but feeling good physically and excited to get back to just playing tennis and getting my level back.”

Basavareddy is seven years younger than Fritz at 21, six inches (16cm) shorter at 5ft 11ins and 30lbs (13kg) lighter. He is also the world No.158 and enters as a wildcard. Fritz is the world No.8 and a US Open finalist. Provided his knee holds up, Fritz should be the easy favourite.

Court 13, third match

Emma Raducanu vs Solana Sierra

Emma has come full circle. In the five years since she won the US Open under the guidance of Andrew Richardson, the list of coaches she has hired and fired has reached double figures. She parted ways with Richardson after that remarkable run in New York and she has never come close to repeating that form again. Now she is back with Richardson again and comes to Paris with the hope of finding that spark again.

“He's someone I've known for a very long time, over a decade,” she said. “We have a great chemistry I think, coach/player relationship. That was evident every time we worked together. Just very happy to have him back.” Today we will learn whether that chemistry is working again.

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