Naomi Osaka will face Aryna Sabalenka tomorrow, in what is undoubtedly the outstanding match of the day.
However, as Roland Garros have proven time and time again, the best clash does not always result in the best scheduling slot.
That is normally reserved for men’s matches, and even then the French players are inexplicably favoured over other genuine superstars.
The same was expected to occur tomorrow, despite the relative weakness of the clashes between ATP players.
Fortunately, the tournament organisers have seen sense, and Aryna Sabalenka will face Naomi Osaka in the night session.
Naomi Osaka vs Aryna Sabalenka is a Roland Garros night session match
This is a wholly unprecedented decision, and one that has not been made in over three years.
Given the fact that Osaka said she didn’t even associate women’s matches with the night session in a recent press conference, it’s clear just how neglected they have been.
Is this one of the the best match-ups on the entire WTA Tour?
Who is taking the win at Roland Garros? 👀
Since these one-match night sessions were introduced in 2021, just four of the 60 have been allocated to a women’s match. However, Osaka vs Sabalenka will mark the fifth.
With Frances Tiafoe playing Matteo Arnaldi being the outstanding pick of the men’s matches, there really was no competition.
However, that has not stopped the Roland Garros schedulers in the past.
Fortunately, on this occasion, they have seen sense, putting aside their baseless biases to give the best match of the day the prime time slot.
A bold decision from Roland Garros that they couldn’t deny
Realistically, when this round of fixtures was confirmed, there was one standout on both the men’s and women’s side.
At any other event, Sabalenka vs Osaka would justifiably be top billing, pitting two of the sport’s biggest hitters against one another.
Who is now your favourite to win the women’s Roland Garros title?
With Coco Gauff out, the draw feels WIDE open…
However, with Roland Garros’ history of overlooking women’s matches like this, nobody knew what they might do.
In the end, the low standard of men’s matches clearly forced their hand. This is probably not a decision they wanted to make, if history is anything to go by.
Hopefully, these two titans of the women’s game can put on a show for the Philippe Chatrier crowd under floodlights, and prove why the WTA does deserve this showtime slot more often in future.
