French Open 2008: Will history be created?
May 15
Over fifteen thousand spectators have already reserved their seats on centre court, the famed Court Philippe Chatrier, and thousands more are expected to arrive at the spectacular Roland Garros venue over the two weeks of the competition in the hopes of catching a glimpse of the fabled combatants of clay court tennis.
Hosted by one of the most romantic cities in the world, Paris, the French Open 2008 event will run from May 25th to June 8th and this year’s event is sure to unleash some of the most riveting tennis - both the men’s and women’s defending champions for the singles event are vying for a fourth consecutive victory.
‘King of Clay’, Rafael Nadal, and his female counterpart, the feisty Belgian, Justine Henin will etch their names into French Open history should they succeed in lifting the crown yet again. Only the legendary Bjorn Borg and the 1920’s heroine of the Open, Suzanne Lenglen, with four consecutive titles apiece, stand firmly in the way of the current champions.
Here’s some news for you to bite on in anticipation of the event:
If he was given the choice, Rafael Nadal said he would prefer to capture a fourth consecutive French Open title rather than a first Wimbledon crown.
The Spaniard, runner-up to Roger Federer the past two years at the All England Club, had previously said a Wimbledon triumph would be the greatest achievement of his career.
Djokovic Continues His Progress on Clay
Novak Djokovic, the world No3 and the most successful player this year, has no need to radically change his style in order to adjust to the clay-court challenge. It is a question of minor tinkering, and after winning this year’s Australian Open the 20-year-old Serb will walk through the gates at Roland Garros in just over two weeks with a genuine chance of the French Open title.
No. 1 Henin stunned by Safina in Germany
Top-ranked Justine Henin was upset by Dinara Safina 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 yesterday in the third round of the German Open in Berlin, derailing efforts to regain her form ahead of the French Open.
Serena Williams’ words of support for Henin
She might be hinting at retirement and suffering a bad patch, but you write off world number one Justine Henin at your peril insists Serena Williams, despite the Belgian’s fourth defeat in four months. Henin made a shock exit from the German Open here yesterday when she was beaten by Russia’s Dinara Safina in a two and a half hour third round marathon.
The first round of the French Open “Roland Garros” 2008 will be aired live on Star Sports India on 25th May 2008, at 2:30 p.m. IST. Round 1 will continue on the 26th and 27th at the same time.
Round 2 will be aired on the same channel, same time on 28th, 29th and 30th of May 2008.
Round 3 will be aired on the same channel, same time on 31st May 2008. More details will follow as and when available.
Stumble it!
May 16 at 02:17
[...] surprising announcement at a news conference Wednesday, less than two weeks before the start of the French Open. She has won that clay-court major championship four times, including each of the past [...]
May 16 at 03:51
I was hoping that Henin would win again. I could not believe it when I read that she announced her retirement, effective immediatly, on the Tennis Channel’s website. It was a huge surprise. I wonder who is favored to win now. Any ideas?
May 16 at 04:22
[...] I was hoping that Henin would win again. I could not believe…April [...]