A new grand slam champion will be crowned at this year’s French Open after Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner were knocked out on consecutive days to blow the tournament apart.

A day after overwhelming pre-tournament favourite Sinner collapsed from two sets up, Djokovic suffered the same fate as the 39-year-old was stunned by the brilliance of Joao Fonseca.

Between them, Sinner, Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev have combined to win every men’s grand slam title since the start of 2021. But all four are now out of contention in Paris.

Alcaraz was unable to defend his title due to a wrist injury, with the Spaniard also set to miss Wimbledon, and an unexpected name is now confirmed to follow him.

Additionally, for the first time in the Open era, the last-16 will start without a former grand slam champion in the draw. Here, we look at the contenders in the men’s French Open.

Alexander Zverev (2nd seed)

Unequivocally, this is the moment Zverev has been waiting for. A mainstay at the top of the sport for nearly a decade, the 29-year-old German has lost all three of his grand slam finals. Now, six years on from serving for the match in the US Open final against Dominic Thiem, surely this is his time to break the duck? With Djokovic, a possible semi-final opponent, now out, Zverev is the most experienced player left in the draw, and will be the favourite in every match he plays. That brings pressure, too.

Rafael Jodar (27)

A teenage winner at the French Open? What a story that would be, the first champion of such an age since Nadal in 2005. And some believe that Jodar, like his compatriot before him, is capable. The 19-year-old made his grand-slam debut at this year’s Australian Open, reaching the second round, and he has already bettered that effort by reaching round three in Paris. More pertinently, however, Jodar entered the French Open on the back of his first pro title, on the same surface on which Roland Garros is played: just last month, he won an ATP 250 trophy on Moroccan clay. He has the form, he has the youthful confidence, and he has zero pressure on his shoulders.

Joao Fonseca (28)

He’s beaten Djokovic, now can Fonseca follow in the footsteps of three-time French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten and bring a grand slam title back to Brazil? The 19-year-old has the firepower to go all the way, as he proved in the closes stages of his unbelievable comeback against Djokovic from two sets down. He has the guts, too, having fought from two sets down in consecutive rounds. “There’s a lot of excitement around him and rightfully so,” Djokovic said. “Hopefully he can be the the next great thing and win slams.”

Casper Ruud (15)

Suddenly, the Norwegian might be dreaming of banishing his repeated Roland Garros heartbreak. He’s going to do it the hard way, though. After feeling “like a zombie” due to the heat in his first-round win, Ruud had to save match point as he fought from two sets down to beat Tommy Paul in the third round. He has the game, though, and the skill on this surface. In 2022 and 2023, Ruud made stellar runs to the final of the French Open, only to encounter Rafael Nadal then Novak Djokovic at the end. He will play Fonseca in the fourth-round.

Felix Auger-Aliassime (4)

On the right side of the draw and positioned perfectly to attack a breakthrough in the grand slams. The Canadian could be on a collision course with French teenage sensation Moise Kouame should both advance to the fourth round. First up, American Brandon Nakashima, but the 25-year-old must surely be eyeing up a career-best performance at Roland Garros after two fourth rounds in 2022 and 2024, while his career-best performance in the grand slams is the semi-final in the US Open in 2021 and 2025.

Jakub Mensik (26)

After collapsing on court with heat exhaustion at the end of his second-round win, the 20-year-old Czech produced a stunning recovery to defeat eighth Alex de Minaur 0-6 6-2 6-2 6-3. Now resurrected, Mensik could be a threat to any player in the draw, having won a breakthrough title by beating Novak Djokovic in the final of the Miami Open last year.

Matteo Berrettini (unseeded)

What a romantic story this would be. The Italian reached a Wimbledon final in 2021 before injury nightmare struck. He missed Roland Garros in four consecutive years but is now back in Paris for the first time since his top-10 peak. With one of the biggest serves in the game, Berrettini, now 30, can be a threat to any player and is the only player in the top half of the draw to have previously reached a grand slam final.

Frances Tiafoe (19)

The popular American, who has retrieved his racket from a fan after victory over Hubert Hurkacz following a social media plea, is the highest seed remaining in the ‘Sinner-quarter’ of the draw, but the worry is whether he will have enough left in the tank. He came through a five-set battle in nearly five hours against Hurkacz in round two but, while his grit and athleticism can take him far, he’ll need to be more clinical in his matches if he wants to go deep into the second week. For the 28-year-old, a first Grand Slam final is now a very realistic possibility.

Moise Kouame (unseeded)

Why not? The 17-year-old wildcard is making a name for himself in Paris after becoming the youngest player to reach the third round of a grand slam since Rafael Nadal in 2003. He will have the backing of the French crowd, who were electric in his brilliant five-set win over Adolfo Daniel Vallejo in the second round. Sure, he’s completely inexperienced, having won just one professional match before this week, but Kouame is a showman, capable of hitting winners from all angles.

Men’s French Open Winner 2026 odds

Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings’ RJ Abarrientos during a game vs Rain or Shine Elasto Painters in the 2026 PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals Game 5. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—RJ Abarrientos has made a living with his offense in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals for Barangay Ginebra.

In Game 5 on Friday at Smart Araneta Coliseum, Abarrientos once again delivered offensively to help power the Gin Kings past Rain or Shine, 111-104.

According to Abarrientos, the reigning Rookie of the Year, simply stuck to the game plan laid out by the coaching staff.

“My coaches told me that I needed to work on everything about my game,” said Abarrientos. “I just needed to double or triple my work to get open and be involved in our offense and defense.”

Abarrientos waxed hot from the field with 31 points that went with eight assists, four rebounds and two steals to help give Ginebra the pivotal 3-2 series lead.

The former Far Eastern University Tamaraws standout bounced back from a forgettable outing on Wednesday, when he scored just eight points in the Gin Kings’ 97-85 loss.

Still, Abarrientos believes there is plenty to improve on heading into Game 6.

“We just have to keep getting aggressive on both offense and defense,” he said. “We have to fix everything we do on offense and our scorers on the bench are also very important. We have to keep going, we have our veterans to do that too.”

Abarrientos and the Gin Kings try to punch their ticket back to the PBA Finals on Sunday in Game 6 at Ynares Center Antipolo.

Mar 3, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) reacts after his team scores against the Philadelphia 76ers during the second quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

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Colonial Country Club can be one of the tougher places to score on the PGA Tour, but with light winds and a soft golf course after rain this week, low scores have been on the menu at the Charles Schwab Challenge. 

Two of the last four winners at Colonial finished at single digits under par, but that will not be the case this week with friendly conditions in Fort Worth, Texas. The leader is already at 10 under and Friday’s second round saw the cut line end up at 3 under, the lowest at the event since 1983. Players have had to take on a more aggressive mindset in the first two rounds than Colonial typically allows. 

Among those who have answered that call the best is Hideki Matsuyama. The 11-time PGA Tour winner moved into a tie for second at 9 under after shooting a 5-under 65 on Friday afternoon. Matsuyama, per usual, is doing much of his damage with his irons, but his short game and putting have complemented that approach play for a well-rounded start to his week. 

Matsuyama flashed his all-world hands — or, in this case, hand — on the 14th to get up-and-down for par with a chip from an awkward lie above the bunker. 

Matsuyama has the most career wins of anyone in the field this week at Colonial, and after a gutting playoff loss earlier this season at the WM Phoenix Open, he’s put himself in position to challenge for win No. 12 this weekend in Fort Worth. 

The forecast calls for winds to pick up a bit on Saturday, but at no point is it expected to really blow this week, which means Matsuyama and the rest of the leaders will need to keep the pedal down if they want to pick up the win. Because of the quality conditions, the leaderboard is incredibly condenseed with the leader just seven shots ahead of the cut line, and that will mean a lot of players who make the weekend will feel they have a real shot at the win. 

The leader

1. Jordan Smith (-10)

The man they’re all chasing heading into Saturday is Jordan Smith, who put together back-to-back 65s to start the week and become the first to reach double figures under par. The 33-year-old Englishman is in his first full season on the PGA Tour and has been in contention before this season, finishing third at the Valspar Championship. He will try to hold his nerve and capture his first win on the PGA Tour this weekend, showing off an impressive all-around game so far this week, gaining strokes in all four phases of the game through two rounds. He’ll need to keep up that quality if he’s going to hold off the chase pack that features some strong veterans and rising stars. 

Weekend contenders

T2. Hideki Matsuyama, Brian Harman, Ryan Gerard, Michael Thorbjornsen (-9)
T6. Russell Henley, J.J. Spaun, Akshay Bhatia, Alex Smalley (-8)
T10. A.J. Ewart, Michael Brennan, Mackenzie Hughes, Brice Garnett, Mac Meissner (-7)
T15. Ludvig Åberg, Gary Woodland, Keegan Bradley and seven others (-6)
T33. Justin Thomas and 14 others (-4)

For a tournament that doesn’t boast the deepest field of the season, the cream has certainly risen to the top through two rounds of play. Joining Matsuyama in a share of second is another fellow former major winner in Harman and a pair of rising stars in Gerard and Thorbjornsen. Gerard has one career win at the Barracuda but is still searching for his first full-field win, while Thorbjornsen is still looking for his breakthrough victory on Tour. 

Bhatia and Spaun are the only players in the top 10 with a win on the PGA Tour this season and will try to double up this weekend. Henley hasn’t quite had the year he’d hoped for to this point, but can change that in a hurry if he can back up a steady 66-66 start by cashing in for his sixth career win. Smalley is brimming with confidence after his T2 finish at the PGA Championship and can try to lean on that positive experience in a weekend in contention in Fort Worth. 

Åberg came into the week as the favorite and after a putter change he’s positioned himself in solid position going into the weekend, but he will need to find that extra gear if he’s going to get his third career win. Thomas will need something special on the weekend to factor in for the win, but he’ll have a chance with an early tee time on Saturday to go out and post a low number before the leaders get going. 

A.J. Ewart wins the “most improved” award from Thursday to Friday, shaking off an opening 70 to fire a tournament-best 7-under 63 to jump into contention — with some help from this ace on the 16th. 

Notable players who missed the cut

• Pierceson Coody (-2)
• Brandt Snedeker (-2)
• Tony Finau (E)
• Harry Hall (+2)
• Rickie Fowler (+3)
• Max Greyserman (+5)
• Sungjae Im (+6)

A cut line at 3 under isn’t very forgiving, and while many of the top names in the field gravitated towards the top of the leaderboard this week, there were some surprising early exits. Fowler is probably the biggest stunner, as a back nine 42 sent him tumbling from 4 under and in the hunt to 3 over and a Friday flight home in a hurry. Im perhaps ran out of gas this week after spending last week in contention at TPC Craig Ranch and will get a couple extra days of rest after a rough two rounds of play in Fort Worth. 

Updated 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge odds, picks

• Hideki Matsuyama (7-1)
• Russell Henley (15/2)
• Jordan Smith (15/2)
• Brian Harman (19/2)
• J.J. Spaun (10-1)
• Michael Thorbjornsen (10-1)
• Alex Smalley (12-1)
• Ryan Gerard (12-1)
• Akshay Bhatia (15-1)
• Ludvig Åberg (15-1)

Matsuyama would be my pick right now, but there are some opportunities to dig for some value a bit further down the odds sheet with such a bunched leaderboard. Gerard is intriguing at 12-1 being just one shot back, and perhaps Åberg at 15-1, nearly double his opening odds, is better conditioned to get a win chasing from behind rather than trying to hold onto a lead. 

The Minnesota Vikings traded Jonathan Greenard not necessarily because they wanted to, but in some facet, because they needed to. He had an expensive cap hit, and he wanted an extension beyond what they could commit.

Vikings Cap Space Decision Carries Defensive Consequences

The problem is that those realities were present heading into the offseason, and Minnesota waited until the final hour to do a deal. Sometimes you extract more value by allowing time to place constraints, but it was always the Vikings who were up against it when it came to Greenard’s future.

Philadelphia had been rumored as a potential suitor from the outset, and they got a deal done while giving up just a pair of third-round picks. Only one of them was available in 2026, and the 2027 pick isn’t likely to be high given the Eagles’ expectations.

ESPN’s Bill Barnwell looked at what other defensive line talents earned in trade compensation, and it’s hard not to be disappointed in what looks like a light return for the Minnesota Vikings.

However, defensive tackles like Quinnen Williams and Dexter Lawrence landed first-round picks in deals, and edge rusher Maxx Crosby (briefly) netted the Raiders two first-rounders.

The Vikings were facing a difficult cap situation this offseason, but the four-year, $98 million deal Greenard signed with the Eagles is structured in a team-friendly manner. Greenard will have cap hits of $6.2 million in 2026 and $11.1 million in 2027. The Eagles will face a potential dead cap hit for Greenard well down the line, but the Vikings could have opted to give Greenard this same deal while reducing his cap number by nearly $16 million in 2026 and more than $11 million in 2027 in the process.

I understand wanting to open up more snaps for Turner, but for what they landed and what they apparently needed to pay Greenard to make him happy, I’d rather have kept one of my best players around for another year or two.

Bill Barnwell – ESPN

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Dallas Turner looked good as he continued to carve out a greater role last season. He also had Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel to force the opposition to prepare for. Not only is that safety blanket now half gone, but the Vikings don’t exactly have depth behind the youngster, either.

Right now, there is an argument to be made that the Turner deal was both misguided and light. There’s an avenue for it to get really bad if the Eagles get the 2024 version of Greenard (Pro Bowl, 12.0 sacks) and Minnesota is looking for answers on the edge.

Ted Schwerzler is a Minneapolis based blogger that covers the Minnesota Twins and Vikings. Sharing thoughts constantly on Twitter, … More about Ted Schwerzler

Fonseca has long been touted as the next big thing, first garnering attention when he followed in the footsteps of Sinner and Alcaraz to win the 2024 ATP Next Gen finals – the end-of-season showpiece for players under the age of 21 – before bursting into the spotlight with his victory over Rublev in Melbourne barely a month later.

He clinched his maiden ATP title on the clay courts of Buenos Aires in February 2025 before reaching the third round on his French Open debut, where he lost to Britain’s Jack Draper. And wherever he went, a carnival of Brazilian flags followed.

Twelve months after making his bow in Paris as the world number 65, he returned as the 28th seed but, while there have been flashes of promise in that period – reaching the third round at Wimbledon, a second career title at last October’s Swiss Indoors, and a quarter-final at the Monte-Carlo Masters – there was a sense he hadn’t quite lived up to his precocious talent.

No more. At the sixth time of asking, Fonseca is through to the second week of a major.

He’s gone where no teenager has gone before in beating Djokovic at a Grand Slam, and is only the sixth to do so at any ATP Tour-level event.

He is the first player since Philipp Kohlschreiber, in 2009, to knock Djokovic out before the quarter-finals at the French Open and the first to do so at any Slam since the 2024 US Open.

“Joao Fonseca has definitely announced himself now,” Annabel Croft said on BBC Radio 5 Live. “He can proudly say he has lived up to the hype, because everyone was saying he hadn’t done much since the hype.

“When all the Brazilians and South Americans were running to the courts to watch him play a couple of years ago, now we know why.”

“It took time for him to find his feet, and the crowd was going to play such an important part if he could get them going, and it literally ended in fireworks,” added former French Open semi-finalist Jo Konta on TNT Sports.

“It was exactly the situation Joao needed to bring out that level of tennis.

“He just played one of the biggest matches we’ve seen for some time.”

USA President Donald Trump has made a massive move on the stock market as WWE Clash in Italy draws close, according to reports.

Trump has been closely involved with WWE in the past, even having made some on-screen appearances. He has also been inducted into the Hall of Fame in the celebrity wing in 2013. His contributions to the Stamford-based promotion were numerous, including his participation in the “Battle of the Billionaires” at WrestleMania 23.

According to a report from HuffPost, Trump has apparently purchased between $15,001 and $50,000 of stock of TKO Group Holdings. It should be noted that TKO is the parent company of both the Stamford-based company and UFC. The purchase reportedly happened earlier this month on the 25th.

Donald Trump’s association with WWE has been criticized by some notable veterans

Mick Foley made headlines a while back after he openly criticized Donald Trump, and chose to end his ties with the Stamford-based promotion.

Foley announced that he would be leaving the promotion and not renewing his legends contract with the company. Taking to Instagram, he wrote:

“PARTING WAYS WITH WWE. While I have been concerned about WWE’s close relationship with Donald Trump for several months — especially in light of his administration’s ongoing cruel and inhumane treatment of immigrants (and pretty much anyone who ‘looks like an immigrant’) — reading the President’s incredibly cruel comments in the wake of Rob Reiner’s death is the final straw for me,” he wrote.

Furthermore, Jesse Ventura has also been very vocal about his disdain for Trump. In an interview on the SpinSisters podcast, Ventura noted that the USA President seemed intent on fracturing the country.

“Make this part of Canada, because it’s obvious Donald Trump doesn’t want us. It’s obvious that he’s ready to fracture the whole country for his own folly, whatever he’s doing. I think we should petition to get out of the United States. If they don’t want us, I’m sure Canada would be happy to take us,” he added.

The authorities of the pro wrestling company have yet to make any moves regarding these criticisms and their association with Donald Trump.