The WTA French Open action begins. The 2026 edition of Roland Garros gets underway, as the second major tournament of the year and the one clay major arrives in Paris. This should be a very interesting women’s tournament, since there is no clear or obvious favorite going in. Iga Swiatek had a solid Rome tournament but lost to Elina Svitolina and is still not the dominant player she once was. Aryna Sabalenka is the top seed but has struggled recently. Coco Gauff is the defending champion but has been involved in a lot of three-set matches in recent weeks. The lack of predictability adds to the excitement around the event. It all starts on Sunday. LWOS has our best bets for three matches. Post your best bets and thoughts in the comments.
WTA French Open
Raducanu – Sierra: Time 9:00 EST
H2H: 0-0
Emma Raducanu faces Solana Sierra. Raducanu has not played much at all since Indian Wells. She played just one match, and that was this past week in Strasbourg. Raducanu lost to Diane Parry. Raducanu has reunited with former coach Andrew Richardson, who was the coach when she won the 2021 US Open. Sierra has had a good clay season, reaching the Round of 16 in Madrid and the second round of Rome. She is 4-2 in her last six matches.
Best Bet to Make
Raducanu reuniting with the coach who helped her win the US Open five years ago seems like a very smart move, but it might not be enough to win this match right now. Raducanu has barely played any tennis over the past two and a half months. Even with her expert coach back at her side, it’s probably too soon for Raducanu to resume playing the kind of tennis she once displayed. She will probably need more time. Solana Sierra is clearly the more in-form player and should win this match.
That being said, betting on Sierra winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Sierra winning @1.65 @1xBet
Frech – Ruse: Time 9:00 EST
H2H: 1–3
Magdalena Frech faces Elena Gabriela Ruse. Frech is 1-7 in her last eight matches. She is 1-4 in five clay matches this season. Ruse is 2-4 in her last six matches, so on the surface, neither player is in particularly good form entering this match. However, Ruse’s four recent losses in that six-match span have come to Mirra Andreeva, Elena Rybakina, and Jelena Ostapenko in addition to Sinja Kraus. The loss to Kraus is the only bad loss of the four. The other losses came to very talented players. Rybakina and Ostapenko have won major championships. Andreeva has reached a French Open semifinal and is expected to compete for major titles in the future.
Best Bet to Make
The reality of Frech’s 1-7 record in her last eight matches is very hard to overlook. What is also hard to avoid noticing is that while Ruse does have a losing record (2-4) in her last six matches, she is losing to elite players most of the time. Most players would lose to Andreeva and Rybakina. A lot of players would lose to Ostapenko. Ruse might not be able to handle the best players on tour, but Frech is not one of the best players on tour, and she is struggling greatly. Ruse should be able to win this match. The price isn’t fantastic, but it’s certainly reasonable. One could argue it’s actually a little generous.
That being said, betting on Ruse winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Ruse winning @1.69 @1xBet
Bassols Ribera – Arango: Time 10:30 EST
H2H: 0–0
Marina Bassols Ribera faces Emiliana Arango. Bassols Ribera is ranked World No. 177, Arango 98. Therefore, a lot of people will conclude that Arango should be the favorite here. The betting markets do have her as the favorite, but only very slightly. It’s not a clear-cut match if you look at the moneyline prices for both players. This is because Bassols Ribera is playing great tennis right now. She crushed Karolina Pliskova (former World No. 1) in qualifying and then beat Aliaksandra Sasnovich in straight sets to get into the main draw. Arango, meanwhile, is 1-4 in her last five. This is why the markets see this as a close match.
Best Bet to Make
The great form of Bassols Ribera is hard to ignore right now. Karolina Pliskova was playing good tennis going into French Open qualifying, but Bassols Ribera easily defeated her. Bassols Ribera then carried that good form into the win over Sasnovich. Arango, meanwhile, is struggling and shows no real signs of lifting her form in this match. Go with Bassols Ribera for a very attractive underdog moneyline price.
That being said, betting on Bassols Ribera winning is a value bet for sure.
Value bet/ the best odds: Bassols Ribera winning @2.04 @Unibet
Main Photo Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
