- Barbora Krejcikova won Wimbledon this month and the French Open in 2021
- Jasmine Paolini has made back-to-back Grand Slam finals in the last two majors
- Recommended bets:
- Barbora Krejcikova to win and each-way
- Jasmine Paolini to win and each-way

One month on from hosting the French Open, the action returns to Roland Garros where Polish phenomenon Iga Swiatek is gunning for gold in her bid to secure a landmark double.

There was no touching world number one Swiatek on her beloved Parisian clay last month as she eased to her fourth French Open crown, all despite being still only 23 years of age.

That is why she is the odds-on 1/2 favourite with LiveScore Bet to claim the gold medal in the French capital as she has proven pretty irresistible on the slower surface, having already racked up 10 clay court titles.

However, there is extra pressure to secure gold for your country and she was a second-round casualty in Tokyo four years ago, albeit she was seeded six and it was on hard terrain.

There is no Aryna Sabalenka or Elena Rybakina in the line-up, which weakens her challenge somewhat, so American ace Coco Gauff, teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva and recent Wimbledon finalists Barbora Krejcikova and Jasmine Paolini are likely to pose the biggest threat to her supremacy.

Swiatek may take some stopping

Swiatek’s record on clay since arriving on the WTA Tour in 2019 reads 84 wins and only 10 defeats while her Roland Garros record stands at 35 wins and two defeats, with four of her six French Open visits resulting in victory.

That shows that it is going to be a seriously tough task to halt her dominance in Paris so she is justifiably available at odds-on, especially given her favourable draw.

Swiatek’s toughest quarter-final opponent comes from Jelena Ostapenko or Danielle Collins while her most daunting semi-final challenge would stem from Naomi Osaka or Qinwhen Zheng.

Quite frankly, it is difficult to see the clay-court specialist faltering against any of those opponents in her current form and it may be that her chief title rivals are drawn away from her in the bottom half, with Gauff, Krejcikova and Paolini the likeliest candidates.

Wimbledon finalists represent the value

Gauff is second in the outright betting and the American, who was beaten by Swiatek in the 2022 French Open final, would be expected to renew her rivalry with the Pole in the final.

However, she looks short enough given there are some fierce competitors in her half of the draw, with French Open semi-finalist Andreeva and Wimbledon finalists Krejcikova and Paolini all in seriously good nick.

Gauff was a fourth-round casualty at Wimbledon earlier this month and the second seed is not operating at the level she was at the end of last season.

The 17-year-old Andreeva, meanwhile, may be a little too raw and inexperienced to land what would be the biggest win of her career, leaving Krejcikova and Paolini as the most interesting candidates.

Those two locked horns in the Wimbledon final two weeks ago, with Krejcikova prevailing in a thrilling third set to claim her second Grand Slam title.

Her other major success came at Roland Garros in 2021, so she has to be considered, while Paolini has now featured in back-to-back Grand Slam finals, having also finished runner-up to Swiatek at the French Open last month.

Prediction

Swiatek is a worthy favourite and it is more than likely that she will go on to claim the gold medal on a surface she is simply faultless on.

However, it remains to be seen how she will handle matters with gold almost expected from her Polish faithful and at 1/2 she is worth taking on.

With that in mind, the bottom half of the draw is the place to go with each-way value up for grabs and Krejcikova and Paolini are the pair to focus on.

Krejcikova should be full of confidence having won the Wimbledon title a fortnight ago and she did win the French Open at this venue three years ago, highlighting her slow-court credentials.

Paolini, meanwhile, is arguably the most in-form player right now as she has made back-to-back Grand Slam finals at Roland Garros and the All England Club.

The Italian has lost only three of her last 17 matches and will believe she is playing well enough to make another big final.

Back Barbora Krejcikova to win and each way at 25/1 with LiveScore Bet.

Back Jasmine Paolini to win and each way at 18/1 with LiveScore Bet.