The second Major of the year - the French Open on the iconic red clay of Roland Garros in Paris - begins Sunday, May 22, and ESPN will be there with extensive coverage on ESPN.com and espnW.com plus SportsCenter, while televising the action across Latin America and the Caribbean. Play will continue daily, culminating with the Ladies' Final on Saturday, June 4, and the Men's Final on Sunday, June 5.
While one defending champion - Serena Williams - has three French Open titles (of her 21 total Grand Slam titles), the men's defending champion - Stan Wawrinka - will be playing for his second win in Paris after defeating Novak Djokovic in the final to win last year. The current top-ranked woman, Williams, has played well in 2016, with a victory in
ROME last week and finals appearances at the Australian Open and at Indian Wells. If Williams wins in Paris, she'll be looking to break the Open Era record for Grand Slam titles on
ESPN at Wimbledon in June (currently held by Steffi Graf with 22). The current top-ranked man, Djokovic, has maintained his superlative form so far this year, taking five titles, including at the first Major of the year. See "Surveying the Field" below for more on the top players.
ESPN.com will provide comprehensive daily written coverage before, during and after the French Open with news plus analysis, as well as video segments throughout the Open. Also, real-time scores from all courts will be available on CourtCast.
Highlights include:
Leading into the French Open: Peter Bodo, Greg Garber and Johnette Howard, along with the espnW crew, will get fans ready for the year's second Major with features and analysis, including:
Will Novak Djokovic win his first French Open and complete the career Grand Slam?
Can Rafael Nadal win a record 10th title at Roland Garros?
What are the chances for 17-time Grand Slam champion Roger Federer?
Will this year be different for the American men - who have typically struggled in Paris - John Isner, Jack Sock and Steve Johnson?
Can Serena Williams, at the age of 34, get back on track?
ESPN.com NOW: regular updates to appear on the ESPN.com NOW feed
Daily written columns: Garber and Howard - both of whom will be on site - and Bodo reacting to the biggest upsets and best matches
The Digital Serve: a daily video segment previewing the next day's action
espnW: daily written coverage and a daily video segment highlighting the women's tournament
The 5 Things We Learned: Garber and others will recap the day's news and notes with quick video snippets on the overlooked storylines
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