Clay season is in full swing, as the world's top tennis talents hit the court at the 2025 Madrid Open this week, seeking strong performances on the tricky surface before contending in the French Open next month — the clay court's Grand Slam.
The second round of the 2025 Madrid Open kicked off early Thursday morning, with much of the sport's Top 25 hunting the WTA 1000 event's title.
Leading the field is clay specialist Iga Świątek, as the world No. 2 player will look to defend her 2024 Madrid trophy and stir up momentum for the month ahead.
Despite ceding her No. 1 ranking to Aryna Sabalenka late last year, Świątek is nearly impossible to beat on clay, with four French Open championships already under her belt.
The 23-year-old, however, is coming off a quarterfinal upset loss to eventual champion No. 18 Jeļena Ostapenko at last week's 2025 Stuttgart Open — a clay-court tournament Świątek's won twice.
That said, Świątek is off to strong start in Madrid, where she defeated No. 72 Alexandra Eala 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 on Thursday — enacting revenge on the teen Philippines phenom after Eala defeated her in the 2025 Miami Open final last month.
Gauff seeks 2025 season turnaround on clay
Along with Świątek, other players to watch this week include US favorites No. 3 Jessica Pegula, No. 4 Coco Gauff, and No. 5 Madison Keys.
Keys and Gauff will begin their 2025 Madrid Open runs on Thursday, while Pegula will start serving in the second wave of the tournament's round of 64 on Friday.
Gauff has seen past success on clay, reaching the French Open final back in 2022 — to face eventual champion Świątek.
The 21-year-old star, however, is in the midst of a particularly frustrating 2025 run, having yet to advance past the quarterfinals of any competition since winning the 2024 WTA Finals.
"I've started to believe that you can just turn it around any week. And just as quickly as you can go on a tear, you can also lose," Gauff said this week.
How to watch the 2025 Madrid Open
The 2025 Madrid Open runs through Saturday, May 3rd. Continuing live coverage will air on the Tennis Channel.
Iga Swiatek continues to dominate the French Open, winning a third-straight title on Saturday.
The world No. 1 defeated Italian Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-1 in straight sets, with Paolini playing in her first-ever Grand Slam final.
"To play [Swiatek] here is something different," Paolini said. "She's already won four titles at 23-years-old — these numbers are not normal. I've never played someone with this intensity before in my life."
Swiatek is just the third woman to win three straight titles at the Paris major, alongside Monica Seles and Justine Henin. It’s also her fourth title at the tournament in five years, as well as her fifth major overall.
She’s 5-0 when reaching the final of a major tournament, dropping just 17 games since her second-round scare against Naomi Osaka last week. And her win streak at the French Open now spans 21 matches, dating back to 2021.
"I got broken at the beginning, so it wasn't maybe perfect, but I think the level was pretty high," Swiatek said after the match. "It wasn't so easy as the score says."
Elsewhere, new singles World No. 2 Coco Gauff won her first Grand Slam doubles title on Sunday, playing alongside Katerina Siniakova at Roland Garros. It’s her second major tournament title after winning the US Open in singles in 2023.
The French Open final is set, with world No. 1 Iga Swiatek set to face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini.
Swiatek took care of top-ranked American Coco Gauff in straight sets 6-2, 6-4 in Thursday's French Open semifinal. Afterward, Swiatek expressed high praise for Gauff's performance.
"She is progressing a lot. You can see by her results. Last year's US Open, for sure, showed that she's tough. At this age, it's kind of obvious that she's going to just grow. So it's nice to see her handling well everything around her, because it's not easy," Swiatek noted. "I'm sure we're going to have plenty more really intense matches on the really highest level."
For Gauff, the tournament isn’t a total loss. She’ll move up to a personal best world No. 2 this week after 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva upset former No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka at the French Open to become the youngest major semifinalist since 1997.
Gauff will now be the first American tennis player — male or female — to be ranked inside the top two since Serena Williams in 2017.
The French Open semifinals will feature a familiar battle, with Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek set to square off on Thursday.
Gauff mounted a comeback win against Ons Jabeur in this morning's quarterfinal match, winning 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, while Swiatek easily took care of Marketa Vondrousova 6-0, 6-2.
"She was playing really well the whole match. She was hitting a lot of winners on me, which is something I'm not used to against anybody," Gauff said after the match. "So today I was just trying to just be aggressive toward the end.
"[Ons Jabeur] is a tough opponent and she's well loved on tour," she added. "I could tell by the crowd today — I know you guys wanted her to win. Honestly, whenever she's not playing [me], I cheer for her, too.”
It's Gauff's third semi in three consecutive majors, with Gauff and Swiatek the only two active players under 26 with more than two Grand Slam semifinals under their belts.
Gauff and Swiatek have met at the French Open before, having most recently faced each other in the tournament's 2022 final. But Swiatek has took 10 out of 11 matches against Gauff — including a 6-4, 6-3 win in the semifinals of the Italian Open last month.
"Coco is not easy. She really likes playing on clay, especially here," Swiatek told ESPN after today's quarterfinals. "I'll just focus on myself and I'll prepare tactically and we'll see."
For her part, Swiatek is looking for her fourth French Open title and fifth Grand Slam overall.
Some have started calling the 23-year-old the "Queen of Clay" — a moniker she hasn't been quick to embrace.
"I think it is too early for me… Comparing me to [Rafael Nadal], I don't think I am at that level yet. I still have many things to prove," Swiatek said late last month.
There's been no shortage of drama at the 2024 French Open so far, with four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka giving world No. 1 Iga Swiatek a run for her money in Wednesday's second-round match.
Osaka looked every bit the former No. 1 that she is, despite the clay court not being her favored surface. After losing the first set to Swiatek in a tiebreak, Osaka took the second set 6-1. But up 5-2 in the third, Osaka could only watch as Swiatek fought back for a 7-5 set win to take the match.
"For sure, this match was really intense. Much more intense for the second round than I ever expected. For sure, I'll be more ready next time," Swiatek said after the match. "Naomi played amazing tennis... I'm happy that she's back and she's playing well."
The victory extends Swiatek’s Roland Garros winning streak to 16 matches. The two-time defending champion is looking for her third-straight trophy — and fourth overall — at the major.
For Osaka, the battle was an indicator of what might be in store for the rest of the year as she continues to make her way back from maternity leave. After all, she had match point at 5-3 in the third set before missing a couple of backhands that Swiatek swiftly converted for a break point.
"I cried when I got off the court, but then, you know, for me, I kind of realize I was watching Iga win this tournament last year, and I was pregnant. It was just my dream to be able to play her," Osaka told reporters in a postmatch press conference. "When I kind of think of it like that, I think I'm doing pretty well. And I'm also just trying not to be too hard on myself. I feel like I played her on her better surface. I'm a hard-court kid, so I would love to play her on my surface and see what happens."
It was Osaka’s best match in years, with some of her serves reaching 122 MPH. She won 92 of the 139 points that lasted four or less strokes, and finished with a 54-37 advantage on winners.
But even as Osaka looked more and more like her old self, it wasn’t enough to overcome the world No. 1. Swiatek’s bid to become the first woman to win three French Open championships in a row since 2009 continues.
Elsewhere, Coco Gauff easily handled Tamara Zidansek in straight sets in her own second round match, while Sofia Kenin and Ons Jabeur also advanced to the third round.
The 2024 French Open starts on Sunday, with a match schedule that promises to wrap the short clay court season up in style.
Looking for her fourth title at the major is three-time Roland Garros champion and World No. 1 Iga Swiatek, considered the favorite to win the whole Slam. Three of her four major titles have come at the French tournament.
Swiatek's career record at the French Open is a dominating 28-2, and she's currently on a 16-game winning streak fueled by victories at tune-up tournaments in Madrid and Rome.
But that doesn't mean she won't face some serious challengers along the way. Get to know some of the Polish tennis champ's strongest competitors.
Aryna Sabalenka
Sabalenka is ranked No. 2 in the world and faced Swiatek in the finals at both Madrid and Rome. She lost in three sets in Madrid, which included a close third-set tiebreak, before losing in straight sets at the Italian Open.
She enters the French Open having won the Australian Open in January, successfully defending her title in the first Slam of the season. At last year’s French Open, Sabalenka reached the semifinals — a career best — before being ousted by Karolina Muchová in three sets.
Season record: 25-7
Coco Gauff
Currently sitting at No. 3 in the world, the highest-ranked American on the schedule is none other than Coco Gauff. Gauff won her first major at the US Open last year, and reached the semifinals of this year’s Australian Open. She faced Swiatek in the semifinals of the Italian Open last week, losing in straight sets.
But her first major final came at the French Open in 2022, before being ousted by Swiatek in the quarterfinals at last year’s French Open. The two are on a crash course for a meeting before the finals, as Gauff anchors the other quadrant on Swiatek’s side of the draw, should they both advance deep into the competition.
Season record: 25-8
World No. 1 Iga Swiatek won her third French Open title in four years on Saturday, defeating Karolina Muchova in three sets, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4.
Swiatek now owns four Grand Slam titles: three from the French Open (2020, 2022, 2023), plus last year’s U.S. Open. The 22-year-old tennis star from Poland is the youngest woman to own four Grand Slam trophies since a 20-year-old Serena Williams accomplished the feat at the 2002 U.S. Open.
After winning the first set handily, Swiatek went up 3-0 in the second — but the unseeded Muchova fought back and scored a few truly remarkable points, including this one:
Sacrificing the BODY 🤯#RolandGarros | @karomuchova7 pic.twitter.com/v6H78TZpOs
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 10, 2023
Despite Swiatek’s previous experience hoisting the French Open trophy, this year’s celebration came with a surprise when the lid of the cup toppled off mid-celebration.
Hat's off, champ 🤭#RolandGarros | @iga_swiatek pic.twitter.com/Iw49NVgC9K
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 10, 2023
Wednesday’s French Open lineup featured upsets and rematches, as World No. 1 Iga Swiatek and No. 6 Coco Gauff met in the French Open for the first time since last year’s final.
Swiatek beat Gauff in straight sets once again, this time taking a 6-4, 6-2 win.
“I feel pretty satisfied with my game, I’m happy I was able to make it in two sets,” Swiatek told the Tennis Channel afterwards. “In the first set, in important moments, I was the one that was more solid. It wasn’t easy, especially with the wind today, but I’m happy I’m into the semifinal.”
Smiles on Chatrier 😄#RolandGarros | @iga_swiatek pic.twitter.com/MZvCIVYz4Y
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 7, 2023
The Polish star has won 14 straight sets against Gauff and owns a 7-0 career record in matches against the American teenager. Swiatek has also won 12 straight matches on the clay courts at Roland Garros, elevating her career win-loss record at the tournament to 26-2.
With the win, Swiatek advances to her third French Open semifinal. Each time she’s reached the semifinal previously at Roland Garros, she’s won the title.
But the three-time major champion will face a tough test Thursday in Beatriz Haddad Maia, who upset Ons Jabeur in three sets on Wednesday to become the first Brazilian woman since 1968 to reach a Grand Slam semifinal. In their only previous meeting last summer, Haddad Maia upset Swiatek on the hard courts of Toronto.
When Coco Gauff faced off against 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva of Russia during the third round of the 2023 French Open on Saturday, it marked the first time Gauff, 19, played a Grand Slam singles match against a player younger than herself.
Gauff, the runner-up at last year’s French Open, lost the first set to Andreeva, but rallied back in the next two sets, ultimately winning the match 6-7 (5-7) 6-1 6-1 to advance to the fourth round, where she’ll face Slovakia’s Anna Karolina Schmiedlova.
But while much of the media ahead of the match focused on age, that topic wasn’t on Gauff’s mind when she stepped onto the court.
“I was just thinking about playing the opponent,” she said. “To be honest, you don’t really think about (age) as an athlete.”
Asked after if she thinks the media focuses too much on that topic, Gauff smiled.
“I’m gonna be honest: Yes. … Age is important to mention sometimes but, as a player and going through it, yes, it gets a little bit annoying. Because I feel like I’m the type of person, I don’t need to be praised because of my age or anything. I prefer just to be praised because of my game, not because of things I’m doing at whatever age.”
Gauff added that she was baffled the other day when she saw a stat about how she had the most bagels (sets that end 6-0) of any teenager on tour.
“I feel like some of these stats, I don’t know, y’all be finding the smallest details,” she said. “I’m like who keeps track of this stuff?”
Even if Gauff doesn’t put much stock in age, she knows experience plays a role. She credits her years on the tour with helping her learn to control her body language, especially in moments of frustration.
“I didn’t realize how much my body language showed until I started watching the film of me,” Gauff explained. “I’m like, yeah, if I was the other side looking at me, I’d be like, ‘Yeah, this girl is down.'”
At moments during Saturday’s match, Andreeva appeared clearly frustrated, smashing a racket during the first set and later hitting a ball into the crowd. Asked by a reporter about her opponent’s “teenage behavior,” Gauff pushed back.
“It’s just being an athlete and being frustrated, to be honest. People do it at all ages, so I’m not gonna blame it on her age,” she said, noting that smashing a racquets is normal for athletes.
“I mean, you shouldn’t do it, but, you know, it’s part of growing up and part of life. So I’m not gonna sit here and berate her for it. I hope you guys don’t either.”
French Open organizers are standing by their “pragmatic” approach in how they dealt with four-time major champion Naomi Osaka during the tournament.
They detailed on Sunday how they tried to engage with Osaka several times before she decided to withdraw from the tournament.
“What we did all together with the Slams, we had to do it,” French tennis federation president Gilles Moretton said at a news conference on the final day of the tournament. “We did the right choice, even if you feel like we shouldn’t say anything … regarding Naomi.”
Osaka withdrew from Roland Garros after she was fined $15,000 for skipping news conferences after her first-round victory. She was threatened by all four Grand Slam tournaments with further consequences if she continued to avoid the media.
Amelie Oudea-Castera, the French tennis federation director general said organizers had written to Osaka privately before the four Grand Slam tournaments publicly fined her and warned of possible additional punishment.
Oudea-Castera said that the four tournaments were simply reminding Osaka of the rules.
“On the $15,000 fine, you noticed we did not want to put that fine at the maximum,” Oudea-Castera said. “On purpose, we only wanted to be at 15, because we wanted to send a message that we wouldn’t go to a default right away. We wanted to have a progressive escalation should she continue not to commit to her obligations.”
She also acknowledged that tennis officials “can do better” in dealing with players’ mental health issues.