The dark horse conjecture of the 2025 French Open

The much-anticipated 2025 French Open kicked off yesterday. The top players in men's tennis are all competing for this year's Musketeers Cup at this clay feast at the Roland-Garros Tennis Park in Paris, France. The favorite to win the 2025 French Open, fans and the media have talked a lot, and now Doufan will talk about the 2025 French Open dark horse conjecture.

Italy's clay player, ranked 26th in the world, may be the biggest dark horse at the 2025 French Open. Born in May 2002, Koboli won the French Open junior men's doubles title in 2020 and turned professional in the same year. In the 2023 season, Koboli broke into the top 100 in the world rankings and qualified for the year-end New Talent Finals. In the 2024 season, Koboli reached the third round of the Australian Open, finishing runner-up at the ATP 500 in Washington, D.C., reaching the third round of the US Open, and entering the top 30 of the world rankings for the first time on September 30.

Heading into the 2025 season, Koboli, who strikes well with his forehand and moves quickly, has made a breakthrough on clay, winning consecutive ATP 250 Bucharest and ATP 500 Hamburg titles, reaching a new high in the instant world rankings to No. 26.

According to the 2025 French Open 2/4 draw, if Koboli wins two games in a row to reach the third round, he will face world No. 3 and German tank Zverev. With Koboli's fiery form of winning two consecutive titles on clay this year, it is difficult to say who will die when he encounters a clay season that is not in good shape this year (the first round of the Monte Carlo Masters, the round of 16 of the Madrid Masters, and the quarterfinals of the Rome Masters), and only won the ATP 500 Munich in Germany and stopped in the second round of the ATP 500 Hamburg in Germany.

Another Italian player, ranked 42nd in the world, will face compatriot Koboli in the second round of the 2025 French Open for a chance to challenge Zverev Jr. in the third round. Born in February 2001, Arnaldi defeated top clay player Ruud of Norway in two sets in the second round of the 2023 Madrid Masters to reach the round of 16 of the US Open, and also helped Italy win the Davis Cup for the first time in 47 years. At the 2024 French Open, Arnaldi defeated the 2023 Monte Carlo Masters and 2024 Madrid Masters champion, the Russian golden monkey Rublev, to reach the round of 16 of a Grand Slam for the second time, and the semi-finals of the Rogers Cup Masters in Canada.

In the second round of the 2025 Madrid Masters, Arnaldi defeated Serbian champion Novak Djokovic in two sets, allowing Djokovic to continue his hard match on clay in 2025 and then reach the quarterfinals of the tournament. However, in the quarterfinals of the ATP 250 Geneva station, Djokovic replied to Arnaldi in two sets to achieve sweet revenge, and finally won the championship of the tournament and the 100th title of his career. If Arnaldi replaces his compatriot Koboli in the third round of the 2025 French Open to challenge Zverev Jr. and cause an upset to become the second dark horse, it is very likely.

Chile's left-hander, who is ranked 56th in the world at the time, could be the third dark horse at the 2025 French Open. Born in June 1997, Tabilo turned professional in 2015 before winning his first title at ATP 250 Auckland in 2024. In the third round of the 2024 Rome Masters, Tabilo unexpectedly eliminated the then world No. 1 and Serbian champion Djokovic with a disparity of 6:2 and 6:3, causing a shocking upset and finally breaking into the semifinals of the tournament. Crowned the ATP 250 Mallorca grass court title again in 2024, Tabillo reached a career-high world ranking of No. 19 on 1 July.

In the second round of the 2025 Monte Carlo Masters, Tabilo defeated Djokovic with a score of 6:3 6:4 to send his opponent his first defeat of the 2025 clay season. Tabileo's powerful left-handed serve, heavy topspin and huge angle tearing made Djokovic suffer as well, losing twice in a row and failing to win a set. According to the 2025 French Open 4/4 draw, if Tabillo wins two games in a row, he will face Norway's Light Ruud in the third round. It would not be a big surprise if Ruud could not quickly recover from the despair of the 0:6 1:6 defeat to world No. 1 Sinner in the quarter-finals of the Rome Masters.

The last dark horse at the 2025 French Open will be Brazilian rookie Fonseca. Fonseca, who was born in August 2006, won the US Open junior title in 2023 and became world No. 1. Fonseca, who will turn professional tennis in 2024, will participate in the New Force Finals at the end of the year, and the lowest-ranked and youngest of the eight will win five consecutive games to win the championship. In the first round of the 2025 Australian Open, Fonseca, who participated in the main draw of a Grand Slam for the first time, defeated the world's top ten, the Russian golden monkey Rublev, to enter the second round of the Grand Slam, and the world ranking also broke into the top 100 for the first time.

At the 2025 ATP 250 Buenos Aires station, Fonseca's newborn calf is not afraid of tigers, and finally defeated Argentina's top player and clay master Fernando Cerundolo in the final to win the first title of his career. It's no wonder that Serbian star Novak Djokovic praised him: "Fonseca has a very complete technical system, a strong serve and a violent forehand and backhand from the baseline, and shows maturity and on-court pressure resistance that does not match his age. The retired Argentine pineapple del Potro said: "Fonseca has a good technical foundation and a strong desire to improve, and it is entirely possible to become a top player. ”

According to the 2025 French Open 1/4 draw table, if Fonseca wins two matches in a row, he will finally challenge Draper in the third round this year to win the Indian Wells Masters, the Madrid Masters runner-up, and the world's fifth-ranked British handsome Draper. Fonseca, who is ranked 62nd in the world at the moment, can make a shocking upset and steal the limelight from the world's No. 5 Draper?

(Source: Tennis Home Author: Colorful Bean Powder)