Paris will play host to the 2nd Grand Slam of 2008 at Stade Roland Garros named after a celebrated French aviator. Rafael Nadal and Justine Henin have reigned supreme on these courts since 2005. The field is as wide as it gets and despite the top favorites, there are younger and hungrier players just lurking to topple the top stars.

The Stade Roland Garros nestled in the posh South West suburb of Paris is the hub of the Federation Francais De Tennis which boasts of one of the most comprehensive tennis programs for juniors and professionals alike. Their training regimen combined with a plethora of tournaments for every level has started producing top talents for future like Gasquet, Tsonga and nearly ten of them in the top 100 in the ATP rankings.

If the recent Monte Carlo Masters results are any indication, it just has reaffirmed the superiority of the top two players in the world .Nadal’s confidence must be on an all-time high with him winning 98 out of 99 matches on clay. His western grip off his forehand gives him so much top spin and he especially favors the reverse cross court when he converts all mid court balls to his stronger hand. Nadal’s quickness needs no mention and he pulverizes his opponents with superhuman consistency. If there is a chink in his armor, it would have to be faster surfaces as his spins are not as effective. Nadal also became only the 2nd player in history to win the doubles and singles in a Masters series at Monte Carlo.

Roger Federer’s surprise losses against Andy Roddick, Mardy Fish and Andy Murray earlier this year have raised doubts on his form and reaffirmed his necessity for a coach. Federer has hired renowned Clay court specialist Jose Higueras who has coached the likes of Michael Chang and Jim Courier. Roland Garros is the only grand slam that is evading the Swiss maestro. Federer and Nadal have faced off 14 times with Nadal leading in the head to head statistics by 8-6.

Russian Nikolai Davydenko and Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic are literally breathing down the necks of Federer and Nadal both in rankings and performances. Davydenko was a surprise winner at Miami Masters event with a straight forward win over Nadal in the final. Interestingly Djokovic has defeated Nadal and Federer this year on hard courts. Djokovic is a complete player with such perfection in technique which makes him comfortable on both clay and hard courts.

There are a few exciting faces in the top like Muhammad Ali- look alike Tsonga, Richard Gasquet, Baghdatis, Andy Murray and others who can give the top four a run for their money, but it is hard to imagine them holding the French Open trophy. Americans Andy Roddick and James Blake might be strongholds in the top 10 in the rankings, but their games have been tailor-made for faster courts.

In the women, Justine Henin will defend her title for the fourth straight year. As a spectator of 1992 final between Monica Seles and Steffi Graf at Roland Garros, ten year old Justine promised her mother that she would win a title there. Within the next 3 years, Justine lost her mother to cancer. But she kept her promise years later when she lifted the French Open trophy for the first time in 2003 at the age of 22. Having won four French titles, she will be the player to beat on that surface.

Ivanovic, the no. 2 player in the world has gotten to two grand slam finals in the past year including the French. With a bubbly personality, Ana Ivanovic is a crowd favorite at any tournament she enters. While a Grand Slam title has been dodging her, she is one of the most consistent performers on the tour. Serbia also boasts of another top 10 player in Jelena Jankovic who is climbed to No. 5 in the World rankings this week. Despite having trained under different coaches, they seem to have a similar game style with flat penetrating ground strokes. Both these girls recorded wins against Venus and Serena Williams at the Australian Open 2008.

This could be a wake-up call for the Williams sisters. Serena has stepped up to the task by winning her 31st tour singles title at Charleston over Vera Zvonereva in the final. A French Open title holder in 2002, Serena has signaled that she may be ready for the challenges at Roland Garros. Venus has had a more lopsided year since her Wimbledon triumph in 2007. She will need to train harder and play more tournaments to come into Grand Slams more sharper than she has. Interestingly she has never made past the quarter final of the French Open.

Russians Svetlana Kuznetsova and Maria Sharapova are playing roulette with the 3rd and 4th spots in the rankings. Kuznetsova’s explosive baseline game combined with fearless charging to the net makes her an exciting player to watch. She did make it to the final of the French Open back in 2006 when Justine showed her clay court prowess with a 6-4, 6-4 win over the Russian. Sharapova’s best performance at the French came last year when she reached the semi-finals. Despite winning the Australian Open this year, Maria’s comfort level on clay is still in question with a loss to Serena Williams at the Charleston WTA event.

Adjusting one’s game to grass has been talked about widely, but clay is just as tricky. The bounce is true but high and slow. So it demands superhuman patience, phenomenal court coverage and stamina. Another aspect not spoken about widely is the movement on clay. Sliding on clay itself is an art and when done right, it’s the last few steps before the ball strike when the slide takes place. The clay court tournament schedule is a brutal one with three Masters events before the French, so remaining injury-free will be just as important. The warm-up tournaments are but a sample of the grand finale that lies ahead from May 25th to June 8th 2008.