ROLAND-GARROS
18 May - 7 June 2026
The second day of Roland-Garros Opening Week will be remembered for the qualifiers battling for survival in heavy clay court conditions while the big names limbered up for main draw action nearby.
Roland-Garros wrap - Tuesday May 19
Qualifying drama and the arrival of Novak Djokovic dominated the news on Day 2
Faria on fire
Another 64 players survived first round qualifying tests in a bid to win three matches over five days to secure one of the coveted 32 spots on offer in the men’s and women’s singles main draws.
Portuguese 22-year-old Jaime Faria made a name for himself by winning the match of the day on Court Suzanne-Lenglen when he fought back to beat former world No.3 Grigor Dimitrov despite the Bulgarian twice serving for the match in both the second and third sets.
Late in the day, well over 5,000 of Tuesday’s ticket holders watched Novak Djokovic step back on to Court Philippe-Chatrier for his first practice session of the week.
The Serbian 24-time Grand Slam champion, who turns 39 on Friday, looked happy to be back on this very special rectangle of Parisian red clay where he has collected three Roland-Garros trophies and an Olympic gold medal during the last decade.
Djokovic spent two hours on court with world No.3 Alexander Zverev. Women’s defending champion Coco Gauff also made her first appearance of the week, while four-time winner Iga Swiatek, Naomi Osaka, and top 10 stars Jessica Pegula and Elena Rybakina were among those spotted across the courts ahead of a Sunday start.
Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic during practice
Another former Grand Slam champion, Canada’s Bianca Andreescu, went back to basics as she cleared the first hurdle in qualifying with a straight sets win over French teenager Daphnee Mpetshi Perricard, who was watched courtside by big brother and ATP star Giovanni.
The 25-year-old former world No.4 told Dan Imhoff that going back to the lower levels of professional tennis recently had been the key to banking matches and building confidence.
Czech former world No.1 Karolina Pliskova is another top player in the women’s qualifying draw and had to hit back after losing the first set 6-0 to get past South Korea’s Yeonwoo Ku.
Among other notable names, there was a late win for young American Emilio Nava, who afterwards discussed how he sees his future game development.
American No.3 seed Ashlyn Krueger, fifth seed Lulu Sun from New Zealand, No.4 seed Coleman Wong from Hong Kong and sixth-seeded Slovak Alex Molcan all progressed to the second round.
While the qualifying continues to thin out, we have one eye on the main draws and a Sunday start for some of the big names.
Alex Sharp studied results from the recent major clay court events to compile a list of the most exciting young stars to look out for in Paris.
Alex takes us through a squad that starts with Spanish sensation Rafa Jodar and ends with Filipino Alexandra Eala - get courtside to see what the fuss is about if you can.
Wednesday will see second round qualifying matches begin with a whopping 64 contests spread over 14 match courts. RG’s Alix Ramsay has scoured the schedule to pick out the ones to watch on Day 3.