Tennis news: Carlos Alcaraz and Coco Gauff capture French Open titles

By Geoffrey Latayan

Carlos Alcaraz and Coco Gauff emerged as the big winners from the 2025 French Open after winning close matches against their respective rivals.

Alcaraz overcomes two-set deficit to edge Sinner

Alcaraz fought back from two sets down to edge out World No. 1 Sinner 4-6, 6-7 (7/4), 6-4, 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (10/2) to clinch the men’s singles title — his second straight French Open win and fifth Grand Slam overall.

Alcaraz became just the ninth player to rally from two sets down and win a Grand Slam final in the Open Era – which began in 1968. 

The first was Bjorn Borg in 1974 against Manuel Orantes at the French Open, where Ivan Lendl and Andre Agassi achieved the same feat. Rafael Nadal also did so at the Australian Open, as did Sinner, in the modern era.

In a final that was witnessed by Hollywood stars Dustin Hoffman and Natalie Portman, director Spike Lee, singer Pharrell Williams, Formula One driver George Russell and world rugby star Antoine Dupont – it was Alcaraz who delivered the goods on the day and gave Sinner his first Grand Slam final loss. 

Furthermore, the Italian succumbed to his fifth straight defeat to his Spanish foe.

Gauff channels her inner Gabby Thomas

Gauff, meanwhile, saw off top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4 to win her first French Open title and second Grand Slam crown of her career.

Gauff fought from a set down to defeat her Belarusian rival and overcame her past heartbreak — a tearful loss in the 2022 French Open final to Iga Swiatek as a teenager.

The 21-year-old disclosed she needed inspiration to demolish the in-form Sabalenka in the final, turning to the Paris Olympics’ women’s 200-meter champion Gabby Thomas.

The sprinter had kept writing down that she would be the Olympic champion in her Notes app, so Gauff tried adopting the same approach and grabbed a piece of paper.

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“I wrote, ‘I will be French Open champion 2025’ like a bunch of times,” Gauff explained. 

“She (Thomas) wrote ‘I will be the Olympic champion’ and she ended up winning the gold. I think it’s a great mindset that she had.”

Eight lines on a piece of paper written by Gauff late on a Friday night, then it was finally time for bed, time to rest.

That wasn’t enough though as Gauff stared at the mirror and convinced herself that she was looking at the face of a soon-to-be French Open champion.

“Looking at myself in the mirror so I was trying to instill that belief, and obviously it happened. I didn’t know if it was going to work or not. (But) it did,” Gauff said.

“When you’re desperate, you’re just trying anything to think that it’s going to help you win.”

Gauff also posted on Instagram another message she wrote to herself four years ago – which started with the words “I had a dream last night that I will win (the) French Open.”

Gauff will now switch to the grass court, possibly featuring in Berlin, Germany in a week’s time before heading to London for Wimbledon – which begins on June 30.

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