What is the prize money for French Open 2023? Everything you need to know about the cash increment at the clay-court major

The French Open will get underway soon, with the qualifying rounds set to begin on 22 May and the main draw on 28 May. The tournament runs till 11 June and is the only Grand Slam played on clay.

In what is good news for players, the tournament organizers have announced that the prize money pool will be $54.6 million, up by 12% from the amount in 2022.

Those playing in the single’s draw can expect an overall increase of 9% over what was offered in 2022. The organizers have clarified that the prize pot had undergone a significant boost to ensure a more equitable distribution between players.

Players exiting the tournament in the first three rounds of the single draw stand to receive between 11% and 13% more this year. The prize money for those playing the three rounds of qualifying sees an increase by an average of 11.8%.

The two winners of the French Open singles titles will bag $2.5 million each this year. The 2022 French Open champions Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek received $2.5 million each for their efforts. The runner-ups this year get $1.25 million, and the quarter-finalists $685,000.

The doubles events, too, have been accommodated in the increase, gaining approximately 4% over last year, with the winners standing to win $640,000. Second-place finishers receive $320,000, and those in third-place bag $160,000.

Not to be forgotten are the wheelchair and quad competitions. They get a sizeable increase of 40% over 2022, amounting to $880,000.

Which players will feature at the French Open 2023?

2022 French Open - Day Fourteen Iga Swiatek of Poland (R) poses with the winner's trophy as Coco Gauff of The United States poses with the runners-up trophy after their Women's Singles final match of The 2022 French Open

The defending champions at Roland Garros are Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek. While Swiatek looks all set to feature in this year's competition, Nadal's participation looks rather uncertain at this point.

The Spaniard has been plagued by injuries since the start of the year and has declined an invitation to compete at the Bordeaux Challenger. He was offered a wildcard entry for the event, which he turned down. This has caused further speculation that he may not be able to recover from his injuries in time to compete at Roland Garros.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion and 14-time French Open winner recently pulled out of the Rome Masters to continue his rehabilitation. Even if Nadal does feature at the French Open, he will not have had much preparation going into the tournament.

The roster of the women's and men's singles participants is fairly on expected lines. Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, Jessica Pegula, Ons Jabeur, and Caroline Garcia round off the women's top 5.

Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Casper Ruud, Daniil Medvedev, and Stefanos Tsitsipas lead the pack on the men's side of the draw.

In Nadal's absence, it could be anyone's game going into the second Grand Slam of the calendar. Swiatek herself should watch for Sabalenka, who won against the World No. 1 at the Madrid Open earlier in May.