Jannik Sinner is unbeaten on clay this year and the clear favourite to win Roland Garros.
The question is: Can anyone stop him?
Give us your one wild prediction for Roland Garros!
During the latest episode of Nothing Major, John Isner, Sam Querrey, and Steve Johnson all backed the Italian to clinch the title.
But all three named a different player when asked who has the best chance of stopping Sinner.
John Isner thinks Ben Shelton has the best chance of beating Jannik Sinner at Roland Garros
“[Daniil] Medvedev,” said Querrey.
“Medvedev battled him in Indian Wells, and he battled him in Rome.
- 2026 Indian Wells F – Jannik Sinner defeated Daniil Medvedev, 7-6, 7-6
- 2026 Italian Open SF – Jannik Sinner defeated Daniil Medvedev, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4
“I think he’s the only guy that can retreat behind the baseline, play awkward, and try to extend the match to five hours.
“But outside of Medvedev, I don’t think there is anyone that can possibly beat him.”
Isner then made his pick.
“People are going to rip me for this, weather-dependent, Ben Shelton,” he said.

“I’m going to say Ben Shelton on like a hot day, dry day.
“But we have to choose someone here, it’s not likely to happen.”
Shelton is certainly a surprising pick, given his clay-court form.
Ben Shelton’s 2026 clay-court record (7-4)
- Houston 2R [WIN] vs Zhang Zhizhen, 7-6, 7-6
- Houston QF [LOSS] vs Thiago Agustin Tirante, 7-6, 3-6, 4-6
- Munich Open 1R [WIN] vs Emilio Nava, 7-6, 3-6, 6-3
- Munich Open 2R [WIN] vs Alexander Blockx, 6-4, 7-6
- Munich Open QF [WIN] vs Joao Fonseca, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3
- Munich Open SF [WIN] vs Alex Molcan, 6-3, 6-4
- Munich Open F [WIN] vs Flavio Cobolli, 6-2, 7-5
- Madrid Open 2R [LOSS] vs Dino Prizmic, 4-6, 7-6, 6-7
- Italian Open 2R [LOSS] vs Nikoloz Basilashvili, 4-6, 7-6, 3-6
- Hamburg Open 1R [WIN] vs Marcos Giron, 6-3, 4-6, 7-6
- Hamburg Open 2R [LOSS] vs Daniel Altmaier, 6-4, 6-7, 4-6
Since winning in Munich, Shelton has lost three of his last four.
It is, however, important to remember that Shelton often plays his best tennis at the Grand Slam tournaments.
If he can do that in Paris, Isner may just be proven right…
Johnson was the last to make his pick.
“Just some bad undercooked chicken is the only thing that’s going to get this done,” he said.
“It’s a badly cooked meal in Chatrier dining hall. There is nobody really likely.
“But I would like to say, weather dependent, Arthur Fils.
“I would love to see that happen in front of a crazy French crowd.
“I think the atmosphere would be insane, and that’s what I am rooting for.”
Unfortunately for Johnson, his prediction didn’t age well, as Fils withdrew from the French Open the day before the tournament.
Was Arthur Fils the best hope of anyone beating Jannik Sinner at Roland Garros this year? 😢
With Fils out of the picture, who else could impress at the French Open?
Sam Querrey and Steve Johnson name their dark horse picks to reach the semi-finals
Querrey and Johnson then picked a dark horse ranked outside the world’s top 10, whom they believe could reach the semi-finals.
“Draw dependent, I’ll take Jiri Lehecka,” said Johnson.
“Casper Ruud is ranked 17 right now,” added Querrey.
“I know it’s recency bias, but I liked how he was hitting the ball last week.”
Official ATP Rankings
| Rank | Name | Country | Best French Open performance | French Open record |
| 11 | Lorenzo Musetti | Italy | SF – 2025 | 13-5 (72%) |
| 12 | Flavio Cobolli | Italy | 3R – 2025 | 3-3 (50%) |
| 13 | Andrey Rublev | Russia | QF – 2020, 2022 | 14-7 (67%) |
| 14 | Jiri Lehecka | Czechia | 3R – 2025 | 3-3 (50%) |
| 15 | Karen Khachanov | Russia | QF – 2019, 2023 | 24-9 (73%) |
| 16 | Luciano Darderi | Italy | 2R – 2024 | 1-2 (33%) |
| 17 | Casper Ruud | Norway | F – 2022, 2023 | 24-8 (75%) |
| 18 | Valentin Vacherot | Monaco | 1R – 2024 | 0-1 (0%) |
| 19 | Arthur Fils | France | 3R – 2025 | 2-2 (50%) |
| 20 | Learner Tien | USA | 1R – 2025 | 0-1 (0%) |
Jiri Lehecka is somewhat of a rogue pick, although Casper Ruud makes a lot of sense.
The Norwegian reached the final of the Italian Open recently and is a two-time Roland Garros finalist.

On his day, there aren’t many better than Ruud in Paris!
Lehecka will begin his French Open campaign against Pablo Carreno Busta on Monday, May 25, while Ruud takes on Roman Safiullin.


