MATS WILANDER PREVIEWS 2021 ROLAND-GARROS

On the tournament favourites
Who are your favourites to win Roland Garros?
My favourites to win Roland-Garros are last year’s champions – Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek. I think Iga has a good chance of repeating which is incredible to think. I think she is as big a favourite as Rafa is – in fact, she might be an even bigger favourite. I am a little concerned with Rafa but he obviously goes in as the favourite.

Is Rafa favourite as usual? Maybe even more given the fact Djokovic doesn't look as strong?
I’m not sure Rafa is as strong as he has been previously coming into a tournament. Last year though was the easiest Roland-Garros he has won, I have a feeling that he will win it, for sure. But I have a feeling that there are enough young guys that are going to take a chunk out of his confidence by overpowering him even though Rafa will still eventually come out on top. In the end, though, I think it will take something away from his confidence, and if you can do that then in the final against a Djokovic or a Tsitsipas there is a slight chance they can make a dent.

On the men's tournament
Rafa Nadal is close to becoming the first male player with 21 Grand-Slam-Titles. What does this record mean to tennis itself?
It will be unbelievable if Rafa can win his 14th title at Roland-Garros, an amazing record that will never be beaten. If he gets to 21, there’s most probably one human being that has the chance to overtake him and that’s Novak Djokovic because I don’t believe we will ever have a situation where someone will win 21 Majors. I know we said that about Pete Sampras – on 14 – but now we are in the definitely no territory. I don’t believe an 18-year-old will show up and just be beating everyone – it’s possible – but I don’t think it’ll happen with the way the game is heading with bigger and bigger hitters, and bigger serves. I just think it will be impossible to be that consistent. I think it is an absolutely massive opportunity for Nadal to make history.

What do you think about Sascha Zverev’s form? He won in Madrid, beating Rafa Nadal. Is he strong enough to challenge Nadal in 5 sets in Paris? Is he capable of winning a Grand Slam this year?
If I was to look at the remaining three Grand Slams this year I would say there is a chance he may run into problems at Wimbledon early on by a lower-ranked player, but I really don’t see Sascha Zverev losing to too many players before he gets to a player of a similar seed. Is this the year to break through? Level-wise – yes. Five-set wise – no. I don’t see him being Rafa or Novak in five sets. It will be interesting to see how much the loss in the US Open will affect him once he gets close to winning another Grand Slam. I am assuming it affected him quite a bit, but do I think he will ever win a Slam? Yes, I do. I think Sascha is a very, very slow learner and if I was his coach then I would prefer this as it means he is so consistent. I think he will win a Grand Slam, but it might take him a few years.

What can we expect from Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas?
Stefanos Tsitsipas is the guy who is going to win a Major next, after Novak and Rafa. I think he is the one who is looking the most obsessed. Dominic Thiem used to have that look in his eye, certainly in the last couple of years, but it has cooled down after winning the US Open which is normal. At the moment, Tsitsipas has that look that says he’s beating these guys like Nadal and Djokovic because he doesn’t want to lose – “I don’t care what round it is, where it is, but I am not going to lose. I’m not leaving this town without losing” – he has this obsession with not losing and he needs to win tennis matches. I don’t think the other guys have had that yet, or they haven’t had it so far, but Dominic Thiem certainly had it for a while but then kind of let go after the US Open.

Tsitsipas and Zverev seem to be the main contenders for king of clay Nadal and number 1 Djokovic. Do you believe more in Tsitsipas or in Zverev?
It is a tough question because I think that Stefanos Tsistipas is a more likely winner of a Grand Slam because I don’t think he gets nervous and I think he can handle all different styles of players. It doesn’t matter if they are ranked 100 in the world and play the best match of their life, or if they are ranked number one in the world and play a decent match. Tsitsipas is more obsessed with his own tactics, meaning hitting forehands as often as he can, or coming forwards all the time. Zverev is very passive, and when Zverev serves well then passive is enough because his first serve is most probably the biggest first serve in the game. I even say it’s nearly bigger than John Isner because he can follow it up. When he serves well, Zverev can beat Rafa or Novak at any moment on any surface and I don’t think Tsitsipas can do that – I don’t think Stefanos Tstisipas can beat Rafa or Novak on any surface at any time, however I do think that Tstisipas will beat them if they are not at their best. Tsitsipas is the more obsessed in a positive way as a player.

Can you explain the strange situation Thiem seems to be in at the moment, when failing to refind his shape?
I can relate to what Dominic Thiem is going through a little bit. I had a huge meltdown after I won two of my Slams – my second and my seventh – you lose motivation, you’ve proven a point. I can’t even imagine what it is like to win a Major when you are 26 or 27 – I can’t imagine how long he has been waiting to do that, how long he has trained, and then suddenly it comes to fruition. The only thing I can say about Dominic Thiem is that he is not out of the same book as Roger, Rafa and Novak – when he wins he reacts like us normal human beings – those other three react differently and they are not normal. They have found something within them that spurs them on to never lose motivation in their ambition which is the rarest thing we’ve ever had. So I’m not worried about Dominic Thiem, it’s a normal thing, is he going to find the intensity? Yes, he’ll find it somewhere, he might find it at the French Open this year but it’s not going to be easy.

On Iga Swiatek
Can Iga Swiatek defend her title?
I think she has already shown she can handle the pressure by winning in Rome a couple of weeks before the French Open. In one way you are already defending your French Open title as soon as you step on clay the next following year. I think by winning Rome she is saying I can defend my title and that I am the best clay court player in the world. She has proven that. Obviously the way the women’s tournament is she has a chance to lose two out of three sets – it makes it so hard to predict as women’s players have much bigger games than before. I am not sure two out of three sets is long enough for women any more as we don’t have the right winner all the time and that’s a big problem in the Majors. I would have thought the conditions would favour her being a little faster, but that’s always debatable.

Do you think Iga Swiatek can be a future number one?
I do think she can be a future number one, yes. Ash Barty is tough to overtake as a number one because she has decided to learn how to play tennis on every surface, she also knows how to play against every style of opponent. If Barty does have a weakness then it’s the two-handed backhand but she has proven she can overcome that – so it’s tough because she is consistent on any kind of surface against any player. It’s tough to take the number one ranking away if Ash Barty is healthy. But if I compare Iga Swiatek to the other players then I think she has the game to improve dramatically on faster courts – look at her mindset and look at what she needs to work on, not just when you are on grass but throughout the whole year, even when you are on clay. Working on things like slices, volleys. Iga just needs to think more long-term.

Mats Wilander is a tennis expert for Eurosport. Watch every match from Roland-Garros on Eurosport and Eurosport App from Sunday 30 May 2021.