Ricky Dimon
Why wait until Monday when you can get the French Open started on Sunday? Roland Garros is yet another Grand Slam that is getting underway on Sunday instead of Monday – making the tournament 15 days long instead of 14. That is certainly music to the ears of fans and bettors.
We can go ahead and capitalize on this extra-day opportunity while watching the likes of Aryna Sabalenka, Qinwen Zheng, Lorenzo Musetti and Ben Shelton take the court.
Let’s take a look at the best bets to be made on the Day 1 schedule.
Ben Shelton vs Lorenzo Sonego Over 39.5 games (-130)
Shelton and Sonego have gone head-to-head 3 times and it has been a competitive matchup. The first encounter went to 7-5 in the third set at the 2022 Cincinnati Masters, won by Shelton. Sonego got revenge at this same Roland Garros event in 2023, prevailing in 4 sets (also in the opening round). They also faced each other earlier this season in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, where Shelton survived in a fourth-set tiebreaker. The American is the favorite on Sunday, but it cannot be overlooked that Sonego won their previous French Open meeting and he has played well in Paris the past. At the very least the Italian should be competitive and he might even win it outright. I’m expecting a long match.
Rinky Hijikata +3.5 games over Reilly Opelka (-105)
Hijikata and Opelka have already faced each other once during this clay-court swing. In round 1 of the Madrid Masters, Opelka scored a 7-5, 7-5 victory. That was a competitive result in conditions (fast at high altitude) that very much favor the big-serving American. The conditions in Paris are much slower; it’s truly a traditional clay-court tournament. Hijikata is not exactly a force on clay, but obviously neither is Opelka; the Australian will have a better chance of dealing with his opponent’s huge serve in this situation. Moreover, you never know if Opelka’s body is going to hold up in a best-of-5-set tussle — especially on clay, with longer points and more physicality in general.
Lucrezia Stefanini +2.5 games over Jil Teichmann (+100)
My favorite play on the women’s side for Day 1 involves 2 relatively little-known players. Although Teichmann is not quite an automatic fade at the moment, she is close. After all, the 27-year-old Swiss is saddled with a 4-10 record on the surface so far this season. She has lost 4 of her last 5 matches heading into Roland Garros. On the other hand, Stefanini is 5-3 on clay in 2025 and already has 3 wins under her belt at Roland Garros — having successfully qualified for the main draw. That gives her a lot of momentum against an opponent who has none. Give me Stefanini to cover and even win outright.
