Del Potro, Halep questionable for French Open; Azarenka set to return

Juan Martin del Potro, who hasn’t played the French Open since 2012, might miss Roland Garros for a fifth straight year.

The Argentinian is currently dealing with pain in his shoulder and back, and has yet to make a decision about the season’s second Grand Slam, which begins on Sunday.

Del Potro missed all of January and, for the second year in a row, made his season debut at the Delray Beach Open in late February. He’s played seven tournaments this season, posting an 11-6 record, and has gotten past the quarterfinals just once.

The world No. 30 was upset by Gastao Elias, 7-6 (0), 6-4, in Lyon on Wednesday.

Also, top women's contender Simona Halep announced that her participation is in doubt because of an ankle injury she experienced during the final of Rome. Halep had initially indicated that the injury did not appear to be serious, but said further examination of the ankle showed a torn ligament that could prevent her participation.

But the former finalist is on the grounds of Roland Garros and practicing with the ankle taped, saying she is still "very positive" about playing the event. Eugenie Bouchard also experienced a torn ligament in her ankle during practice at Nurnberg and indicated she is highly doubtful to play the French Open, though she is also on the grounds and practicing.

In a more encouraging development, Victoria Azarenka has confirmed that she will play the Mallorca Open, which begins on June 19. The former world No. 1, who gave birth to her first child in December, hasn’t played since last year’s French Open.

Azarenka announced this week that her plan is to be ready for Wimbledon, which kicks off on July 3.

Sabine Lisicki will also return to the WTA tour in Mallorca. A shoulder injury has kept the 2013 Wimbledon finalist off the court this year.

(Kamakshi Tandon contributed to this report.)

· Get Tennis Channel Plus for Roland Garros to watch 200 live matches from up to five courts, starting with the Qualifying Rounds.

· Watch the Best of Roland Garros 2016 on-demand at any time

· Get Tennis Channel Plus for all of Roland Garros, as well as 650+ live events all year long

· Tennis Channel Plus is available on any streaming device, on mobile, always on the GO (desktop, iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku and Amazon Fire)
· Subscribe today at BuyTCPlus.com

PLUS: Watch the Racquet Bracket Show on Tennis Channel this Friday at 9 PM ET—then play the Racquet Bracket game for the men's and women's draws.