The recent French Open final proved that clay courts have as much to offer the tennis world as any other surface, if not more. Reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner met in that showpiece. The former was looking to enforce his dominance on the famed red surfaces, while the latter was out to prove that he isn’t just a hard-court specialist. And boy, did they serve up a treat.
It looked like it would be Sinner who was set to rubber-stamp his status as the world’s best player. The Italian raced into a two-set lead and, despite dropping the third, had two championship points in the fourth to secure his maiden Roland Garros crown. Ultimately, though, Alcaraz proved that he was still the man to beat.
The Spaniard roared back into life, saving those championship points before winning the fourth and fifth sets to complete one of the greatest comeback victories of all time. Now, all attention turns to Wimbledon, and online tennis betting sites think the two new rivals are set to go head-to-head once again. The latest tennis betting at Bovada odds currently has both men priced as +150 joint-favorites to reign supreme at the All-England Club, and it remains to be seen which of them outlasts the other.
It’s clay court supremacy that really gets us excited. So, who are the best clay court players on the planet at present? Here are our top three.
Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz’s triumph in Paris has underscored that he is not only undoubtedly the standout player on clay today, but also the best player on the planet full stop. The 22-year-old Spaniard racked up a phenomenal 82-18 record throughout his first century of matches on the surface, the best among all active players and even higher than the GOAT Novak Djokovic’s mark at the same stage. With an 82% win rate on clay in his career, Alcaraz has proven himself a worthy successor to fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal’s throne.
Alcaraz’s dominance over the last few years tells a compelling story. Throughout 2023 and 2024, he clinched eight clay-court titles, including prestigious tournaments in Monte Carlo, Madrid, and Barcelona. However, those triumphs pale in comparison to his exploits at the French Open.
Last year, the Spaniard reached the final for the first time ever. He was already a two-time Grand Slam champion, and he went on to claim the French title for the first time after winning a five-set thriller against Alexander Zverev. Fast forward 12 months, and Alcaraz won another thriller to successfully defend his crown. Now, he has to go to SW16 looking to complete a three-peat of Wimbledon titles.
Novak Djokovic
While Novak Djokovic’s reputation as a complete all-surface player precedes him, his clay-court credentials stand tall among the best. The Serbian legend maintains an outstanding career win rate of 80.3% on the surface, with a staggering 286 wins and 20 clay-court titles to his name. Among these, his three triumphs at Roland Garros highlight his ability to conquer even the toughest settings.
Nole’s talents on clay are somewhat overshadowed by the fact that his prime happened to coincide with that of his great rival, Rafael Nadal’s. The undisputed King of Clay won a whopping 14 French Open crowns, regularly defeating Djokovic en route to glory. Overall, however, the Serbian has more Slams to his name – winning 24 over the years compared to Nadal’s 22 – and his three triumphs are nothing to be scoffed at.
Casper Ruud
Casper Ruud is a name synonymous with clay-court consistency. Rising through the ranks, the Norwegian star made no secret of the fact that the aforementioned Nadal was his hero and inspiration. As such, he based his entire game on the Spaniard, and that led to him becoming a pretty decent clay-court player himself. Unfortunately for the 26-year-old, though, his maiden slam triumph remains elusive.
Ruud reached back-to-back French Open showpieces in 2022 and 2023. But sadly for the Norwegian, he came up against the two greatest of all time, firstly losing to Nadal and then to Djokovic 12 months later, to leave the City of Love empty-handed. Add that to his US Open defeat of 2022, and he is now 0-3 in Slam finals.
That isn’t to say that he hasn’t had success elsewhere, though. Ruud recorded 22 clay wins in 2023 in arguably his best year on the tour, which included capturing his first Masters 1000 title in Madrid. Over his career, he has reached 18 clay-court finals, including those disappointments at Roland Garros, winning 12 of them. Now, the pressure is on to get over the line in one of the four grand slams, and considering his talent on clay, the French Open looks like his best hope.
