French Open: Top Tennis legends who have failed to win the title

The French Open is just one day away from the main draws to start. This is the start of another Clay season finale we all have been waiting for. Like any other Roland Garros tournament this is also set to be another iconic grand slam tournament to watch out for. There will be a great mix of talented players who are set to play in this tournament to achieve their most-awaited grand slam glory this season in Paris.

This might be one of the most iconic Grand Slams but is also considered the toughest as well,  though right now we have seen the members of the holy trinity such as Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal who have won every grand slam in their career, there are a lot of players who have not been able to achieve this feat. There have been many iconic and legendary players who have failed to win a title in the Clay season finale. We will be looking at some of these great players who have only this failure in their illustrious careers.

So, here are the top 5 legendary players who have failed to win a Roland Garros title:

5. Andy Murray

Andy Murray is considered one of the most iconic players in Tennis from the UK and is probably the only player who has stepped up to the holy trinity in his career. Though Murray has had some heartbreaks in the Australian Open as well, the French Open has not been a tournament where he has failed most of his career. Murray has only managed to reach one French Open final in his career and though we still consider him one of the most talented players in the game this is one failure which will always be with him. Murray still has a chance in this edition which will most likely be his last French Open tournament as well.

4. Arthur Ashe

Arthur Ashe is one of the most legendary figures in Tennis who brought American tennis to where it is right now. Ashe was one of the first African American tennis players to win major grand slams throughout his career. Ashe has managed to win major trophies like Wimbledon, the  US Open and the Australian Open, the only grand slam he could not grasp in his career was the French Open where all he could manage was two-quarter finals in 1970 and 1971. 

3. Jimmy Connors

One of the greatest American players of all time in the 70's and 80's is Jimmy Connors who has achieved almost everything a tennis player can achieve throughout his career. With 8 Grand Slams to his name which include 5 US Opens, 2 Wimbledons and a Australian Open title there was no doubt he was one of the best players in the world. The only spot on his career is that he has not won a single title in the French Open. Connors has been in 4 Roland Garros semi-finals and has failed to win even one of them in his otherwise decorated career. It turns out that the Clay Surface was the only kryptonite for the otherwise extremely talented and influential figure in the game.

2. Pete Sampras

Yes, we all were surprised as everyone when we heard the likes of Pistol Pete Sampras had not won a title in Paris at all. Pete Sampras was one of the most dominant figures in the world of Tennis and is one of the legendary figures in the American tennis world. Sampras used to dominate his opponents with his powerful serve and all-round court skills. It is tough to think that a career consisting of 14 Grand Slams has failed to win the title in Paris. Sampras might have had one of the greatest careers for any tennis player, but it turns out that the best he could do in Paris was a semi-final finish in 1996. It turns out that the perfect career of Samprass has only one stain he has to live with.

1. John Mcenroe

John Mcenroe is one of the most iconic figures in the tennis world who has achieved some of the greatest rivalries with some of the most legendary players. John Mcenroe has also had a great career and has victories against some of the best players in the world including the likes of Bjorn Borg. John Mcenroe did manage to make it to the finals in 1984 but had to face defeat against an upcoming player in Ivan Lendl. It has been a great career, but we still expected an aggressive player like Mcenroe to have at least one title in Paris as players like him normally succeed on clay most of the time. He is one of the legendary players everyone remembers and it is difficult to think that he could not get a Grand Slam victory on Clay.