05/10/2026
Anyone remember the 2003 French Open? Legend has it, someone still has their hand up.
I can set the scene for you. Coming in, it was a foregone conclusion that Serena Williams was the one to beat for a second year in a row. She was at the height of her powers, right of the heels of her first “Serena Slam” and had the rest of the locker room nervous to see their name drawn to hers. She made her way through to the semifinals with little fuss and then she ran into a pesky little Belgian who had beaten her on clay before and even beat her in straight sets in a lead up tournament to this very major. But this was the main stage and Justine Henin hadn’t proven herself quite yet in the biggest moments. On the best clay court in the world, the underdog came out swinging and had Serena locked in for a fight. Down a set, Serena dug in and forced the match into a decider. Serving up 4-2 in the decider, something happened that would change the trajectory of history and the match itself. Henin would raise her hand before getting prepared to return serve and Serena noticed it, but not before tossing the ball up. She asked the umpire for another first serve because of the distraction, however the umpire said he didn’t see it and Justine Henin refused to own up to it. The already pro-Belgian, French crowd took note of the awkward interaction and so did Serena. She would go on to lose that semifinal and not reach another French Open semifinal for 10 years. That moment would be replayed for years and serve as a critical point in the careers of both Williams and Henin.
Crazy stuff.
And on the men’s side, Juan Carlos Ferrero finally broke free of some of his French Open baggage. After being stopped in the semifinals twice, and a shell shocked performance in the finals just the year prior, Ferrero finally crossed the line. His bigger obstacle was a Quarterfinal match against familiar foe, Fernando Gonzales. The two battled for hours and Ferrero needed 6 match points to finally capture the win. He took the momentum all the way through to his first and only French Open title.
