The 2024 French Open has its first week in the books, as the round of 16 begins in the men’s and women’s singles draws today. Here, The Athletic looks at the takeaways from the opening seven days in Paris.
Thank goodness for the Lenglen roof…
A sensational start. A debut for the ages. A bright future at the top of the game in every sense.
If pushed to select a star of the first week, it has to be the roof on Court Suzanne-Lenglen. New for this year, having a second covered court has made an enormous difference, with the roof used every day so far. It has prevented the scheduling chaos of the last seven days from becoming scheduling turmoil.
The design, which is inspired by French tennis legend Lenglen’s pleated skirt, allows for some ventilation compared to a typical tennis roof design, preventing things from becoming too humid and uncomfortable.
All hail our new roof overlord.
Without the roof, this year’s tournament would have looked very different. (Bertrand GUAY / AFP)
Roland Garros needs an upgrade
That might sound strange given everything we just said about that fancy new roof — but there is a serious need for another show court on the grounds.
Court Simonne Mathieu was a lovely addition a few years back, with seating for 5,000, but beyond that the…
