Of course, the big news at Roland Garros has not yet centred on what has happened on the court. There will be fallout through the day on Naomi Osaka’s withdrawal, and the press conferences will probably revolve around what press conferences are for, and met with sidesteps as neat as anything you see on the clay.
Nevertheless, the show must – and will – go on and the return of Nadal to his kingdom will perhaps cool the unfortunate circus that has formed around l’affaire Osaka. He begins his campaign for his 14th (fourteenth) title by meeting the Australian, Alexei Popyrin, on Philippe-Chatrier.
Before that, the 2019 women’s champions and number one seed, Ashleigh Barty, takes on Bernarda Pera, the American-Croatian.