Novak Djokovic picks Rafael Nadal ahead of himself as favorite for French Open 2024

Novak Djokovic believes Rafael Nadal should be considered the favorite for the 2024 French Open men's singles title, even though the Spaniard is far from the 'King of Clay' this season. After that, the Serb placed himself in the pecking order, followed by the likes of Alexander Zverev and Stefanos Tsitsipas.

Djokovic will be in action this week at the ATP 250 Geneva Open, where he's set to take on Yannick Hanfmann in his opener. The stop in Geneva is his final tournament before Roland Garros, where the Serb will look to defend his title.

Nadal, meanwhile, is already in Paris, preparing to win his record-extending 15th French Open title. Having missed last year's edition due to injury, the Mallorcan will be looking to capitalize on his decent start to the clay season, which sees him with a 5-3 win/loss record on the surface coming into the clay Major.

Speaking to the press during his time at the Geneva Open, Novak Djokovic discussed the favorites for the French Open title, admitting that things are more open this year than they have been in the past. With Nadal injured and just on his way back to competitive fitness, the clay swing witnessed a diverse group of winners in 2024.

Stefanos Tsitsipas won the Monte-Carlo Masters, while Casper Ruud won the ATP 500 Barcelona Open. The Madrid Open went to Andrey Rublev, with Alexander Zverev winning the Italian Open to complete the list of winners of the four major tournaments on the calendar in the lead-up to Paris.

Djokovic believes that all four aforementioned players could be considered favorites for Roland Garros. At the same time, the World No. 1 maintained that Rafael Nadal should always be the main man as long as he's in the draw at the French Open.

"This year is more open. Casper Ruud is surely one of the five players who are candidates to win. You have Alexander Zverev, Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas -- all the players who won a major tournament on this surface this year," Novak Djokovic said.

"But when you talk about Roland-Garros and Nadal is there, he is always the biggest favourite for me. After everything he has done on the courts at Roland-Garros court, it's normal, respectfully to put him as the biggest favourite," he added.

After Nadal, Djokovic picked himself, emphasizing that his experience and hunger for Grand Slams make him a different player as soon as a Major starts.

"Obviously it's a little different with his level of play. But it's Roland-Garros and it's Nadal. After that, maybe me, if I feel good, if I play well. At Roland-Garros, and all the Grand Slams, I am a bit of a different player," Novak Djokovic said.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion, a three-time winner at the French Open, is without a title this season

---

Novak Djokovic is the No. 1 seed at the 2024 French Open, Rafael Nadal unseeded

Internazionali BNL D'Italia 2024 - Day Seven

At the 2024 French Open, Novak Djokovic will be the No. 1 seed, while Rafael Nadal will be unseeded.

What it means is that there's a chance that the two could meet even in the first round, marking their 60th meeting on the ATP Tour (head-to-head is 30-29 in the Serb's favor).

The two have met 10 times at Roland Garros, with the Spaniard leading 8-2. Djokovic, though, remains the only player to beat the 22-time Grand Slam champion twice in Paris.