The 1968 French Open was a

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...

tournament that took place on the outdoor

clay court A clay court is one of the types of tennis court on which the sport of tennis, originally known as "lawn tennis", is played. Clay courts are made of crushed stone, brick, shale, or other unbound mineral aggregate depending on the tournament. ...

s at the

Stade Roland Garros Stade Roland Garros (; "Roland Garros Stadium") is a complex of tennis courts, including stadiums, located in Paris that hosts the French Open. That tournament, also known as ''Roland Garros'', is a Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam tennis champio ...

in Paris, France. The tournament was held from Monday 27 May until Sunday 9 June 1968. It was the 72nd edition of the

French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ven ...

, the 38th to be open to foreign competitors, and the second

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

of the year. This was the first Grand Slam that allowed professional players to compete and the first Grand Slam tournament in the

Open Era The racket sport traditionally named lawn tennis, invented in Birmingham, England now commonly known simply as tennis, is the direct descendant of what is now denoted real tennis or royal tennis, which continues to be played today as a separate sp ...

Ken Rosewall Kenneth Robert Rosewall (born 2 November 1934) is an Australian former world top-ranking amateur and professional tennis player. He won a record 23 Majors in singles, including eight Grand Slam singles titles and, before the Open Era, a record ...

and

Nancy Richey Nancy Richey (born August 23, 1942) is an American former tennis player. Richey won two major singles titles (the 1967 Australian Championships and 1968 French Open) and four major women's doubles titles (the 1965 US Championships, 1966 Austral ...

won the singles titles. The 72nd staging of the tournament went ahead, despite the French General Strike of 1968 which began on 2 May of that year.

Finals

Seniors

Men's singles

defeated

Rod Laver Rodney George Laver (born 9 August 1938) is an Australian former tennis player. Laver was the world number 1 ranked professional in some sources in 1964, in all sources from 1965 to 1969 and in some sources in 1970, spanning four years befor ...

, 6–3, 6–1, 2–6, 6–2 * It was Rosewall's 5th career Grand Slam title and his 2nd French Open title.

Women's singles

defeated

Ann Haydon-Jones Ann Shirley Jones, (née Adrianne Haydon on 17 October 1938, also known as Ann Haydon-Jones) is a British former table tennis and lawn tennis champion. She won eight Grand Slam tennis championships in her career: three in singles, three in wome ...

, 5–7, 6–4, 6–1 * It was Richey's 2nd and last career Grand Slam title and her only French Open title.

Men's doubles

Fred Stolle Frederick Sydney Stolle, AO (born 8 October 1938) is an Australian former amateur world No. 1 tennis player and commentator. He was born in Hornsby, New South Wales, Australia. He is the father of former Australian Davis Cup player Sandon Sto ...

defeated

Roy Emerson Roy Stanley Emerson (born 3 November 1936) is an Australian former tennis player who won 12 Grand Slam singles titles and 16 Grand Slam doubles titles, for a total of 28 Grand Slam titles. He is the only male player to have completed a caree ...

, 6–3, 6–4, 6–3 * It was Rosewall's 12th career Grand Slam title and his 4th and last French Open title. It was Stolle's 14th career Grand Slam title and his 3rd and last French Open title.

Women's doubles

Françoise Dürr Françoise Dürr (born 25 December 1942; sometimes referred to by English writers as Frankie Durr) is a retired French tennis player. She won 50 singles titles and over 60 doubles titles. According to Lance Tingay, Bud Collins, and the Women' ...

defeated

Rosemary Casals Rosemary "Rosie" Casals (born September 16, 1948) is an American former professional tennis player. Casals earned her reputation as a rebel in the tennis world when she began competing in the early 1960s. During a tennis career that spanned mor ...

Billie Jean King Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 major titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. King was a member of the victorious United States ...

, 7–5, 4–6, 6–4 * It was Dürr's 3rd career Grand Slam title and her 3rd French Open title. It was Haydon-Jones' 4th career Grand Slam title and her 4th French Open title.

Mixed doubles

Jean-Claude Barclay Jean-Claude Barclay (born 30 December 1942) is a former French international tennis player. He competed in the Davis Cup a number of times, from 1962 to 1963.Billie Jean King Billie Jean King (née Moffitt; born November 22, 1943) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. King won 39 major titles: 12 in singles, 16 in women's doubles, and 11 in mixed doubles. King was a member of the victorious United States ...

Owen Davidson Owen Keir Davidson (born 4 October 1943) is a former professional tennis player of the 1960s and 1970s. Alongside Billie Jean King, Davidson won eight grand slam mixed doubles titles. In 1967 he won a calendar year slam for mixed doubles, wh ...

, 6–1, 6–4 * It was Durr's 4th career Grand Slam title and her 4th French Open title. It was Barclay's 1st career Grand Slam title and his 1st French Open title.

Juniors

Boys' singles

Phil Dent Philip Clive Dent (born 14 February 1950) is a former professional tennis player. Dent's high water mark as a pro singles player was reaching the Australian Open final in 1974, which he lost to Jimmy Connors in four sets. Dent was also the me ...

defeated John Alexander, 6–3, 3–6, 7–5

Girls' singles

Lesley Hunt Lesley Hunt (born 29 May 1950) is a former tennis player from Perth, Western Australia. Particularly noted as a junior player, in 1964 at the age of 14 she won a rare double in the Western Australian Women's open, taking both the Open and Juni ...

defeated Eugenia Isopaitis, 6–4, 6–2

References

External links

French Open official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:French Open, 1968 1968 in Paris 1968 in French tennis