Remember last year when news broke that ‘TNT Sports’ had inked a groundbreaking 10-year deal with the French Tennis Federation to become the new US home of Roland Garros, starting in 2025? As a division of Warner Bros. Discovery, TNT Sports is now delivering the most extensive US coverage of the iconic clay-court Slam. And the inaugural year kicked off with history as Rafael Nadal’s emotional farewell, as well as Frances Tiafoe’s strong start in the second round. But just as the celebration began, TNT’s coverage faced a dose of reality when Andy Roddick placed Nadal above Tiafoe at the French Open. The question now is: Why did Roddick throw that curveball?
On May 25, Rafael Nadal received a legendary farewell at Roland Garros, one fitting for the “King of Clay”. Surrounded by tennis royalty, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray, Nadal was honored with a career highlight reel and thunderous standing ovations from an emotional crowd. The permanent placement of his footprints on Court Philippe-Chatrier served as a lasting tribute, marking the poignant end of an era. It was a moment of pure tennis history in the making that had the world waiting with bated breath to catch a glimpse of.
Following the tribute, the tournament officially began, and American star Frances Tiafoe quickly stole the spotlight with a dominant 1st-round win over Roman Safiullin. While it was a landmark day for TNT Sports, broadcasting the event in the US for the 1st time under their new deal, not everyone was satisfied. Former American tennis ace Andy Roddick took a pointed jab at the coverage, calling out a major broadcasting miss that disappointed many US fans.
Speaking on his podcast “Served with Andy Roddick,” former top seed Andy Roddick shared his candid thoughts on Rafael Nadal’s emotional farewell and its coverage in the U.S. “TNT’s coverage, I think, for the most part so far has been awesome. It has been a complete upgrade from what we normally see. I think they’ve done a great job,” Roddick began. But he didn’t hold back on his criticism either. “I would have liked to have watched the ceremony live. No disrespect to Frances Tiafoe, but Frances is going to play a lot of Grand Slam matches. I think we’re only going to have one Rafa ceremony, you know, in this world. I don’t think you want Twitter reacting before people are seeing it live. But all in all, I thought it was full of gratitude and respect both ways,” he concluded, highlighting what many felt was a missed moment.
Frances Tiafoe of United States during the match against Sebastian Ofner of Austria at the Internazionali BNL d Italia 2025 tennis tournament at Foro Italico in Rome, Italy on may 10, 2025. AntoniettaxBaldassarre
True to Roddick’s concerns, many fans echoed similar disappointment across social media as well. One user on X wrote, “@tntsports not airing the Rafael Nadal ceremony is insane. Way to screw it up already, TNT,” while another lamented the loss of the former broadcaster, saying, “I’m missing Eurosport.” The sentiment was clear as tennis fans in the U.S. were left frustrated at missing Nadal’s once-in-a-lifetime sendoff in real-time.
Meanwhile, tennis lovers across the globe were able to watch the entire ceremony as it streamed on Roland Garros’ official YouTube channel and across all social media platforms.
And as the 1st day at the French Open concluded, with Nadal’s legendary farewell and Frances Tiafoe’s opening win, Tiafoe himself reflected on the victory and the road he’s taken through a tough clay-court season to get to this moment.
Frances Tiafoe shares thoughts after gritty opening win at France
American ace Frances Tiafoe now has the luxury of 2 full days to rest and recharge after cruising past Roman Safiullin in straight sets to secure his spot in the 2nd round at Roland Garros. The American, who hasn’t yet reached the 2nd week in Paris, unlike other Slams, now has a clear goal to chase as the tournament progresses. Tiafoe seemed content with his performance following his 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 victory, especially after a rocky clay-court season where he previously fell short in the final at the Houston Open.
“He’s very tough,” Tiafoe said about his Russian opponent, acknowledging his gritty resistance. “I moved the ball around well today. I played way better than I thought I was going to. I’m going to have to play really aggressive,” he added, giving insight into his tactical approach and mental preparation throughout the match.
Statistically, Tiafoe’s performance was solid as well. He fired 7 aces, won 59% of his 2nd-serve points, and notched a total of 112 points throughout the match. He also put together an impressive stretch of 7 consecutive points during key moments of the match, a testament to his ability to seize momentum. With this opening-round win under his belt, Tiafoe now looks ahead to his next challenge: Spain’s Pablo Carreño Busta, who also came through his 1st-round clash in straight sets.
With a strong and confident start, the question now looms: can the American breakthrough on the Parisian clay and finally make it to the 2nd week? What do you think?
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