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The French Open 2025 is set to kick off on Sunday, May 25. The first day of the tournament will feature players from the top half of the women's singles draw taking to the court. World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka will commence her quest for her maiden title in Paris against Kamilla Rakhimova.
Three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek is also in the top half of the draw but she will begin her title defense on Monday. She's bidding to become the first woman in the Open Era to claim four consecutive titles at the clay court Major.
The last few weeks of intense competition during the clay swing has led to this. With that in mind, here are the predictions for some of the women's singles matches set to take place on Day 1 of the French Open 2025:
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#1. Amanda Anisimova vs Nina Stojanovic
Anisimova's promising start to the clay swing fell apart in no time. An injury forced her to throw in the towel during her semifinal showdown at the Charleston Open. She left her next two events, the Madrid Open and the Italian Open, without a win. With the French Open around the corner, she dropped down to the Challenger level for some additional match play.
Anisimova made the quarterfinals of the Paris Challenger but another injury forced her to abandon her campaign there. She has arrived at the French Open on a three-match losing streak on the main tour. She made the last four in Paris as a teenager in 2019. She has an 11-6 record at the venue and lost in the second round last year.
Stojanovic came through the qualifying rounds of the French Open with three-set wins in each round. This will be her first main draw appearance at a Major since the US Open 2021. She has a 0-2 record at the clay court Major and coupled with her 0-5 record against top 20 players, the scales tip heavily in Anisimova's favor.
Predicted winner: Amanda Anisimova
#2. Petra Kvitova vs Viktorija Golubic
Kvitova returned to action from maternity leave in February this year. However, she didn't win a match until a couple of weeks ago. She beat Irina-Camelia Begu 7-5, 6-1 in the first round of the Italian Open to register the first win of her comeback. Unfortunately, she withdrew from the tournament after that.
Golubic has also won only one match at the WTA level this year, that too on hardcourts. She contested a couple of Challenger tournaments during the clay swing and made the last four in one of them. She received a direct spot in the second round of the Italian Open as a lucky loser. She had Naomi Osaka on the ropes and even served for the match but ultimately lost in three sets.
Kvitova leads Golubic 1-0 in the head-to-head. She won their only meeting at the Billie Jean King Cup 2018 in three sets. Both players have only one win at the WTA level. However, the Swiss did win a few more matches at the Challenger level. That could prove to be the difference and could give her a slight edge over the two-time Wimbledon champion.
Predicted winner: Viktorija Golubic
#3. Marta Kostyuk vs Sara Bejlek
Kostyuk played only a couple of tournaments during this clay swing but she made them count. She reached the last eight at the Madrid Open following wins over Emma Raducanu, Veronika Kudermetova and Anastasia Potapova. She gave a good account of herself against World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka but lost to her in two tight sets.
Kostyuk defeated Alexandra Eala, Daria Kasatkina and Leylah Fernandez in straight sets at the Italian Open to book a fourth-round showdown against Sabalenka. The Ukrainian came up short against the top-ranked player once again.
Bejlek came through the qualifiers to book her spot in the main draw of the French Open. However, she hasn't won a match at the main draw level on the WTA Tour this year. Kostyuk has been in impressive form since the start of the clay swing and should be able to sustain this momentum to make a winning start in Paris.
Predicted winner: Marta Kostyuk
#4. Diana Shnaider vs Anastasiya Soboleva
Shnaider failed to win back-to-back matches in her first couple of tournaments on clay in Charleston and Stuttgart. She hit her stride at the Madrid Open, giving defending champion Iga Swiatek a tough fight before losing to her in three sets in the fourth round.
Shnaider continued her good run of form to reach the quarterfinals of the Italian Open. She was on the cusp of victory against Jasmine Paolini but blew a healthy lead to lose the match. She has a 1-2 record at the French Open and lost in the first round last year.
Soboleva successfully qualified for the French Open to make her Major debut. She has stuck to the ITF circuit this year and won a title on clay. However, that won't be enough to deal with a player of Shnaider's caliber. The step up in quality and competition could prove to be too much for the Ukrainian.
Predicted winner: Diana Shnaider
