French Open 2018: 4 Players Who Will Be Missed

With the French Open scheduled to start on Monday, there is a lot of excitement amongst the tennis fans. Current World No. 1, and defending champion Rafael Nadal starts as the favourite. He has been in imperious form leading up to the French Open.

The challengers to dethrone Nadal would be the likes of Thiem and Zverev. However, there are a few players who won't be participating in this year's second Major. Their absence has made the field weak and has robbed fans of the opportunity to see their favourite players.

The following are the high profile players who would be missed during this year's French Open:

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#4 Hyeon Chung

Chung had reached the semis of the Australian Open

Hyeon Chung became famous in the tennis circles after he reached the semifinals of the Australian Open. He played the match of his life and defeated former No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals of the first Major.

After the brilliant run in Melbourne, his form has dipped a bit and was unable to consistently perform in the ATP Master's events. However, his all-around game makes him dangerous on clay. His powerful backhand and solid defence can trouble the best of the players.

Unfortunately, the current World No. 20 would be missing this year's French Open due to an ankle injury.

#3 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Tsonga has not played since February

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga is one of the most powerful players in tennis. The former World No. 5 is one of the only three players to have beaten the Big 4 in the grand slams. His booming serves and zippy forehand can make life tough for any opponent.

Tsonga had reached the semifinals of the French Open in 2013 and 2015. He would have posed a great challenge to the next-gen players. Due to a left knee injury, the Frenchman is ruled out of the tournament. His absence will mean that there won't be any signature winning moves seen at Roland Garros.

#2 Andy Murray

Andy Murray is yet to recover from his hip injury

Andy Murray is a former finalist at the French Open. A part of the Big 4, the Scotsman is known for his baseline play. Since clay-court aids, low bounce and are slow compared to other surfaces Murray has struggled to perform consistently on clay-courts.

Murray has not played a competitive tournament since his injury during Wimbledon last year. Because of this, his rankings have taken a beating and he has dropped out of top 30.

The 30-year-old is one of the major players who will be missing this year's Roland Garros. With age not by his side, it is highly unlikely to see Murray win the French Open in future.

#1 Roger Federer

Roger Federer has skipped the French Open again this year

For the second year in a row, the French Open will miss World No 2 and fan favourite, Roger Federer. To keep his body fit and avoid burnout, the 36-year-old decided to skip the entire clay-court season.

His credentials at the French Open are impressive. He has managed to win just once here but has reached the finals a record five times. He has a win percentage of 76% on clay-courts. Had Nadal not been there, he would have been the greatest clay-court player of all time.

Tennis enthusiast will definitely be disappointed with Federer's defence as it robs them of a Federer vs Nadal showdown.