The heat hit 33C in Boulogne-Billancourt on Monday and Roland Garros turned into a test of touch, timing and patience. Alex de Minaur handled it best, beating Toby Samuel 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 as the first week of the French Open settled into hot conditions that were expected to last.
Daria Kasatkina said she could not remember the last time it had been so hot at Roland Garros, and she was not alone in treating the temperature as part of the assignment. Players were forced to adjust their games while trying to find their best level through the discomfort, though few were badly affected on Monday and the lack of high humidity kept the heat from becoming even more punishing. Kasatkina said players had to start preparing mentally when they saw the forecast, but that the physical strain could still become very tough once the match began.
For Iga Swiatek, the changing conditions were obvious from the start of the tournament. She said it had been about 16C when players first arrived and the ball felt super heavy, but the hotter air made it bounce off the court faster. That changed the shape of rallies on the clay. In colder weather, the ball sits lower and takes more effort to move through the court. In heat, the surface tends to play quicker, serving and aggression can pay off more quickly, and heavy topspin can also become a bigger weapon because the ball rises higher after the bounce.
De Minaur embraced that version of clay. He said he has always preferred hot and lively conditions to chilly ones on a clay court because it lets him bring more of his all-court game into play. He said it was easier to be a little more aggressive, the ball was jumping and he did not mind the heat. That approach carried him through a straight-sets win over Samuel, who was making his first appearance in the main draw of a grand slam and was also playing his first match against a player ranked inside the top 150.
Samuel’s path to this moment was only just beginning. He competed at the University of South Carolina before starting his professional circuit journey in 2024, and Monday gave him a difficult introduction to the level and pace of major-tournament tennis. The result fit the day’s broader pattern at Roland Garros: players who adapted quickly to the weather found their footing, while those still searching for comfort had to do it in full view of a court that was playing faster than usual. With the hot spell expected to run through the first week, the tournament is likely to keep rewarding those willing to attack the conditions rather than wait for them to change.
