Jannik Sinner’s chances of clinching a maiden French Open crown received a major boost when defending champion Carlos Alcaraz withdrew with a wrist injury.

The Italian, who reclaimed the World No. 1 ranking last month, heads to Paris in red-hot form after capturing the last six Masters titles, which included a dominant run through the clay-court swing in Monte Carlo, Madrid and Rome. The prospect of completing a career Grand Slam is an extra push.

Indian tennis star Sania Mirza believes the 2026 Roland Garros crown is Sinner’s to lose. “Today, Sinner and Alcaraz have the biggest rivalry, which at one point was between Roger [Federer] and Rafa (Rafael Nadal) until Novak [Djokovic] came into the mix, followed by Andy Murray. We will feel the Alcaraz void but I’ll tell you what, Sinner is not going to be too unhappy with that,” Sania said in an interaction facilitated by Sony Sports Network.

“Sinner is someone we cannot ignore because of the sheer form he’s coming in with. He’s probably the hot favourite. And not having to face Alcaraz is going to be a huge mental boost for him,” Sania added.

The 39-year-old labelled Djokovic as the tournament’s “dark horse”, stressing that the Serb remains capable of denting Sinner’s hopes.

Sania, however, feels that the title race in the women’s draw will be tough to predict.

“For the first time in a while, it’s quite open. Aryna Sabalenka is not playing at her best. Iga Swiatek is usually unbelievable on clay but has had a quiet few months. My gut says that we might have a new champion. Maybe Mirra Andreeva or Elina Svitolina... someone who has been knocking on the door of the Grand Slams for a while”.