Way-too-early Grand Slam predictions for the rest of 2025

Credit to Author: D’Arcy Maine| Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2025 18:47:24 EST

The first major of the 2025 season came to a close over the weekend as Madison Keys and Jannik Sinner claimed the singles trophies at the Australian Open.

In her 46th Slam appearance — and last before turning 30 next month — Keys won her first major title behind a stunning run throughout the tournament. The No. 19 seed rattled off one impressive victory after another before defeating No. 2 Iga Swiatek in the semifinals in dramatic fashion and then upsetting two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka in the final on Saturday, 6-3, 2-6, 7-5. She became the first woman since Serena Williams in 2005 to beat the top two players en route to the trophy in Melbourne.

Keys credited her surprise triumph in part to letting go of the burden of having to win a Slam.

“I finally got to the point where I was OK if it didn’t happen,” Keys said after the final. “I didn’t need it to feel like I had a good career, or that I deserved to be talked about as a great tennis player. I feel like finally letting go of that kind of internal talk that I had just gave me the ability to actually go out and play some really good tennis to actually win a Grand Slam.”

On the men’s side, there was remarkably less suspense as Sinner, the world No. 1, cruised relatively unscathed throughout the fortnight and successfully defended his 2024 title. The 23-year-old Sinner dropped just one set in Melbourne and largely dominated his opponents, including during a 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-3 final against Alexander Zverev on Sunday. Sinner is the youngest man to win back-to-back at the Australian Open since Jim Courier did so in 1992 and 1993 and the first Italian to claim three Slam titles in history.

In 2024, three women — Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek and Barbora Krejcikova — and two men — Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz — captured Slam titles. Will any of them join Sinner and be able to repeat the feat in the new year? Or will someone, like Keys, fly under the radar and make a splash on one of the sport’s biggest stages?

With just under four months until the start of the main draw at the French Open, and a lot of tennis left to play on both hard court and clay in the meantime, it’s of course nearly impossible to make predictions about the rest of the season’s majors — but that won’t stop us from trying. Here’s who should be the top contenders at each of the remaining Slams of 2025.

When: May 25 – June 8

Where: Paris

2024 champions: Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz

Top women’s contenders in 2025: Swiatek, Zheng Qinwen, Coco Gauff, Jasmine Paolini, Mirra Andreeva, Sabalenka

No one since Rafael Nadal has been more dominant at Roland Garros than Swiatek. She’s won four of the past five titles in Paris and is essentially the “Queen of Clay.” And she hasn’t just won at the tournament, she’s been virtually untouchable. In 2024, she dropped one set (in an instant classic against Naomi Osaka in the second round) but otherwise lost a combined 20 games during her run. In the final, she resoundingly defeated Paolini 6-2, 6-1. She remains very much the favorite for the year’s next major.

But while it’s rare, she can be beaten at Roland Garros. Zheng pulled off one of the biggest upsets of 2024 when she defeated Swiatek in the semifinals at the Olympics, held at the storied venue. Zheng went on to win the gold medal and will now arrive to the French Open brimming with confidence and in search of her first major title.

Gauff, currently ranked No. 3 in the world, has had success on the red clay throughout her young career. She reached the final in 2022, as well as the semifinals last season, and won the 2024 doubles title with Katerina Siniakova, as well as the junior title in 2018. She has what it takes to win on the surface. Paolini was a surprise finalist in 2024 after a remarkable run, which saw her defeat two major champions along the way. She will be looking to prove last season was no fluke.

Andreeva, 17, reached the first major semifinal of her promising career at the event last season and only continues to improve. And then there’s Sabalenka, the world No. 1 and 2023 semifinalist. She has twice won the 1000-level Madrid title on clay and will certainly be in the mix in Paris this spring — and maybe playing with a chip on her shoulder after her loss in the Australian Open final.

Top men’s contenders in 2025: Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, Zverev, Casper Ruud

Entering last year’s tournament having battled an arm injury in the lead-in events, Alcaraz was pushed to five sets against both Sinner in the semifinals and Zverev in the final. And yet he found a way to win, securing his first French Open title. Some six weeks later, he earned the silver medal during the Olympics at the venue, cementing his status as one of the best in the world on the surface and at Roland Garros.

Alcaraz’s bid to achieve the elusive career slam was stopped — for now, anyway — by Djokovic in the quarterfinals at the Australian Open last week but that defeat will likely make him only hungrier the rest of the season.

Djokovic, a three-time French Open champion, defeated Alcaraz in the Olympic gold-medal match in dramatic fashion and proved he’s still capable of winning the big titles. Djokovic, who will turn 38 just before the start of the tournament, had to retire from his semifinal match against Zverev in Melbourne with a hamstring injury. He also underwent an unrelated knee surgery after having to withdraw from Roland Garros last year ahead of the quarters. But he remains focused on winning his record-breaking 25th major title, and he certainly knows what it takes to win in Paris.

Zverev cited last year’s defeat in the final as a turning point in his career, and he’s since committed himself to improving his conditioning and stamina. Having clearly already achieved some results, who’s to say he can’t win at the French Open? After now losing in three major finals, Zverev will have no shortage of motivation.

And while Ruud has had his struggles as of late — he lost in the second round at the Australian Open — he reached the final in Paris in 2022 and 2023 (and the semis last season) and is always a threat on clay.

When: June 30 – July 13

Where: London

2024 champions: Barbora Krejcikova and Carlos Alcaraz

Top women’s contenders in 2025: Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Krejcikova, Paolini, Ons Jabeur

There is perhaps no title more up for grabs on the women’s side than Wimbledon. With grass such a short segment of the annual calendar, few have seemingly mastered the surface and it could result in someone unexpected making a deep run.

But Sabalenka is a two-time semifinalist at the All England Club and reached the round in her past two appearances in 2021 and 2023. While she was unable to play last year due to injury, and has never won a title on grass, assuming she’s healthy at that point in the year, she might just be the favorite.

Rybakina’s season so far has been defined by her controversial coaching changes, and she faced many questions about them during her fourth-round run in Melbourne. But if she is able to focus on tennis, the 2022 Wimbledon champion remains a serious contender at the tournament and is one of the best in the world on the surface. Her 2024 campaign was derailed by Krejcikova in the semifinals.

Krejcikova, a two-time major champion, was the unlikely victor last season thanks to multiple comeback victories and unwavering self-belief. She missed the Australian Open due to a lingering back injury but will undoubtedly want to show her title victory was no accident.

Paolini, the other 2024 finalist, and Jabeur, the 2022 and 2023 runner-up, have also proved to be formidable foes on the surface. Jabeur, whose 2024 season was plagued by a shoulder injury, has spoken many times about how much a Wimbledon title would mean to her.
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