The French Open is a major tennis tournament that takes place over two weeks at the Roland Garros Stadium in Paris, France, starting at the end of May each year. In the world of tennis betting, the little yellow ball decides the outcome of all wagers.

Betting on French Open - Women

The French Open is one of the four important tennis tournaments known as the Grand Slam. It is the only one of them played on clay. The bounce of the ball on clay courts is slower, making it easier to retrieve and therefore harder for players to hit absolute winning shots. As a result, the points last longer, and the matches require more physical endurance.

Ever since the success of Justine Henin between 2005 and 2007, no player has managed to retain her title in the next edition.

Betting on a clay court match

Clay courts are slightly easier on the human body as the surface absorbs more shock and allows players to slide into position rather than stopping their run completely, thus conserving some of their energy.

As in WTA tournaments, the winner of the match advances to the next round after winning two sets out of a maximum of three. From the first round to the final, the tennis player who will lift the Suzanne Lenglen Cup must win seven consecutive matches.

Tennis is suitable for live sports betting. During an end change, the tennis players have a maximum of 90 seconds to rest, which gives bettors the opportunity to place a bet during the match without missing any game action.

Different from other clay-court tournaments

As stated earlier, Roland Garros is the only Grand Slam tournament played on clay. The irony is that the courts are not really clay. To a depth of 80 cm, the court is composed of layers of sand and volcanic rock topped with white limestone and red brick dust that gives the court its appearance of clay.

The Philippe Chatrier court at Roland Garros is one of the fastest clay courts ahead of the WTA 1000 in Rome (all WTA bets in Rome), with the centre court having much more running room, so the tennis players can keep more balls in play.

The company that provides the clay to the Roland Garros stadium is Supersol. Terre Davis provides the clay in Monte Carlo and Rome, and Celabasa supply it in Madrid and Barcelona.

The other difference with the WTA clay-court tournaments is the balls. The Dunlop Fort Clay Court ball is used in the majority of tournaments because it is designed to repel dust. However, the Roland Garros tournament is played with Wilson French Open balls.