Day six at the 2022 French Open will see Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Alexander Zverev all in action.
The highly anticipated trio of matches begin on Court Phillip-Chatrier when Djokovic faces Slovenia’s Aljaz Bedene. The world No.1 breezed through the opening two rounds, beating Yoshihito Nishioka and Alex Molcan to set up a third round tie with 195th-ranked Bedene.
Nadal will continue his tournament with a match-up against 26-year-old Dutchman Botic Van De Zandschulp, in what could be a difficult tie for the Spanish veteran. So far Nadal has been untroubled in his opening victories against Jordan Thompson and Corentin Moutet, ranked 82nd and 139th in the world respectively, but 26th-ranked Van De Zandschulp could provide a different test for the 35-year-old.
World No. 3, German star Zverev gets his third round tie underway following the conclusion of Nadal’s match on Lenglen. Brandon Nakashima with a singles ranking of 75 stands in his way. The American batted his way through his first round tie before seeing off 58th-ranked Tallon Griekspoor in the second round to set up a tie with the German.
Carlos Alcaraz is also in action when he takes on Sebastian Korda in what is expected to be a tight affair. Elsewhere Belinda Bencic and Leylah Fernandez will battle for a spot in the next round, whilst Coco Gauff also takes to the court.
TOP MATCH – KORDA V ALCARAZ
The world No.6 will be looking to continue his fine form in a bid to secure his first-ever Grand Slam title, and after a tight victory against companion Albert Ramos-Vinolas, will be expected to step up and show his quality in the latter stages if he is to go all the way on French soil.
He’s up against 27th-ranked Sebastian Korda, which will provide a difficult test for the teenager physically and mentally. He was beaten at this stage last year, which should give the 19-year-old extra incentive to go one step further at least.
POTENTIAL UPSET – NADAL V VAN DE ZANDSCHULP
French Open legend Rafael Nadal is up against 26th-ranked Van De Zandschulp as he searches for his 14th Roland Garros title. He has only ever crashed out at this stage of the tournament once, and you would back him to get the job done this time.
Van De Zandschulp however has proved he is a tireless competitor over five sets. The Dutchman was the only player that managed to take a set off Daniil Medvedev in the run-up to last year’s US Open, and could cause problems for Nadal if he let’s the game drag on.
BRIT WATCH – NORRIE V KHACHANOV
The last Brit standing. Thanks to Dan Evans’ loss to Mikael Ymer on Thursday afternoon, Cameron Norrie remains Britain’s only hope of Roland-Garros singles success.
The world No.10 faces 25th-ranked Karen Khachanov in the men’s singles third round on Court Simonne-Mathieu.
Jamie Murray is in doubles action with teammate Bruno Soares in the second round, they’re up against American pair Mackenzie Mcdonald and Tommy Paul on court seven from 10:00 GMT.
There’s more British interest when Neal Skupski begins his mixed doubles campaign, whilst first-ranked Joe Salisbury and partner Rajeev Ram are into the second round of the men’s doubles.
Jonny O’Mara is also in men’s doubles second round action, as Heather Watson and Samantha Murray Sharan compete in the women’s doubles tournament.
