The hard and fast pivot from the lengthy clay court tennis season happened immediately after the French Open epic final on June 8. 12 days into grass court season and 10 days before Wimbledon begins, we can safely conclude with few exceptions, the grass court season is a mess. It gives us little indication of what players could make a deep run at Wimbledon.
Players who were into the latter rounds of the French Open including Coco Gauff and Jannik Sinner have barely had time to emotionally recover from what happened to them in Paris so it is no surprise that they lost early in the tournaments at Berlin and Halle, respectively.
Sinner.
“After the loss in Paris, it wasn’t easy to come here and compete again. I’m relatively satisfied to have been able to play two matches on grass before Wimbledon. I need to rest a bit now”. pic.twitter.com/tKERxM7ked
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) June 20, 2025
As for the Americans, aside from Amanda Anisimova and Taylor Fritz playing in finals last week (before both struggled this week), there has not been anything to cheer about. Jessica Pegula, Madison Keys, and Emma Navarro are having a difficult time adjusting. I am not sure you can even consider these high ranking Americans losing in the early rounds of these tournaments upsets. Frances Tiafoe lost, and Tommy Paul is injured and has not played any grass court tournaments yet.
Like the tennis schedule, grass court season needs to be reevaluated leading up to Wimbledon
Carlos Alcaraz and Aryna Sabalenka have somehow managed to win tough matches on grass, but otherwise, there is not enough time for top players to make the adjustments. Some need to rest after the French Open, but if they do, they miss out on few and finite chances to play on grass before Wimbledon.
Players accustomed to and comfortable on grass have the advantage because of the short turnaround. Consider 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova who has been injured often since winning her maiden Grand Slam. She is making a splash in Berlin because the surface works for her game allowing her to get Wimbledon ready with fewer matches.
Draper is one of those players to watch on this grass-court season.
His tennis adapts really well to the surface.#HSBCChampionships pic.twitter.com/vkSQMo8bib
— Alejandro López Fernández (@alejandrolf2410) June 18, 2025
Other players who prefer clay or hardcourts need time to adjust to the footing, the funny bounces, and how the grass plays when it is worn down at the service line.
