Seven moments that defined the often-sublime 2017 French Open

At the start of this year’s French Open, I wrote that the men would be returning to their recent past, while the women would spend the next two weeks searching for their future. That’s pretty much how it turned out. Thirty-one-year-old Rafael Nadal reminded everyone why he’s the king of clay with his 10th title at Roland Garros, and 20-year-old Jelena Ostapenko broke out of the pack to give the WTA a fresh new face at the top of the game.

The tours never waste any time moving on from Paris. But before the sight of green grass wipes away the memories of red clay, here’s a look back at seven moments that defined Roland Garros in 2017.

Does Anyone Want the No. 1 Ranking?

The women’s side of the tournament began with what may have been the least surprising major upset in tennis history. On Day 1, Angelique Kerber became the first top seed in the Open era to lose in the first round at Roland Garros when she went out in routine fashion to Ekaterina Makarova, 6-2, 6-2. That defeat completed a second straight disastrous clay season for Kerber. We’ll find out soon if this is her nadir for the year, as it was in 2016, or whether it’s a sign of a longer slump ahead. But while the German’s defeat seemed to signal wholesale carnage in the women’s field, that carnage never materialized—the WTA draw largely went to form after that.

Winning With a Heavy Heart

Steve Johnson threw caution to the wind and let his ground strokes rip in his first three matches in Paris. Twice, against Yuichi Sugita and Borna Coric, it worked; the third time, against Dominic Thiem, it didn’t. Johnson may have been playing with so much freedom because he wasn’t even sure how much he wanted to be there. His father, Steve Sr., a renowned Southern California tennis coach, had died suddenly at just 58 in early May. Tennis is about family for many of us, and that went double for Steve Jr., who was as happy hitting with his dad at home as he was competing on Centre Court at Wimbledon. It showed in the tears Johnson shed after his victories.

Kiki’s Legion of Lenglen

As loose as Johnson was playing, that’s how tight Kristina Mladenovic was to start in Paris. After three games of her opener against Jennifer Brady of the U.S., the French favorite was down 0-3 and had an injured back. But Mladenovic rallied to win 9-7 in the third, and rallied again to beat another American, Shelby Rogers, 8-6 in the third. By the time Mladenovic faced defending champion Garbiñe Muguruza on Court Suzanne Lenglen in the round of 16, she was powering forehands, pointing her finger at her forehead, and leading a rowdy army of French faithful. Mladenovic embraced the audience and took what emotional support they could give her in a way that another French favorite, Amelie Mauresmo, never did. But many felt the crowd crossed the line in its treatment of Muguruza. Team-sports fans will tell you that’s what professional athletics is all about, and they aren’t wrong. But not many tennis fans outside of Paris enjoyed hearing the defending champion get booed as she walked away.

Novak Doesn’t Have Paris Anymore

Twelve months ago, Novak Djokovic finished his French Open flat on his back, joyfully celebrating his first title there after a decade of futility. A year later, he finished his French Open by halfheartedly making his way through a bagel third set against Dominic Thiem. In 2016, Djokovic left Paris holding all four Grand Slam titles; in 2017 he left holding none of them. As far as opponents go, there have been worse losses during that decline; going out to Denis Istomin in Australia comes to mind. But as far as Djokovic’s own mindset goes, this was a low point. He said the defeat to Thiem, a player he had never lost to before, was essentially “decided” in the first set.

Simona Says

Most players would have been hard-pressed, after squandering a 6-4, 3-0 lead in the French Open final, to put together a cogent and gracious concession speech afterward. But not Simona Halep. With dry eyes, she calmly gave credit to her opponent, thanked her somber, silent family in the stands— “Let’s keep working,” she told them hopefully, “let’s believe.”—and admitted that, “Maybe I wasn’t ready to win.” More than anything she does with a racquet, Halep’s strongest quality is her honesty. More than anything else that happened at this year’s French Open, I’ll remember her poise and her words in defeat.

To Be Young Again

That’s what the ever-more-mature sport of tennis felt like—young again—whenever Jelena Ostapenko was on the court these past two weeks. She was born on the same day in 1997 that 66th-ranked Gustavo Kuerten completed his surprise run to the title in Paris. The 47th-ranked Latvian’s happy romp to her own title, two days after her 20th birthday, had the same refreshingly unlikely feel. Ostapenko, firing away like a young Monica Seles, wouldn’t be denied; she won five matches in three sets, and came back from 0-3 and 1-3 deficits against the higher-ranked Halep in the final. When Ostapenko’s last backhand return rifled down the line and touched down in the corner for a winner, tennis fans all over the world jumped halfway out of their seats at the same time. The game can always use a jolt like that.

Finally Saying Uncle

From Steve Johnson thinking about his late father to Simona Halep consoling her parents and team after her defeat, family was one of the themes of this year’s Roland Garros. And that’s the way the fortnight ended, with a nice nod to family—specifically, Rafael Nadal’s family—by the French Tennis Federation. In honor of Rafa’s unprecedented 10th title, and his uncle Toni’s final trip to Paris as his traveling coach, the FFT invited Toni onto the trophy podium and presented both of them with a life-size replica of the Coupes des Mousquetaires (they were obviously pretty confident Rafa was going to win). Toni stood in the spotlight a little uncomfortably as Rafa told the crowd that winning 10 French Opens would have been “not possible” without him. The tribute, from the FFT and Rafa, was fitting. Uncle and nephew, who have won 15 major titles together, are the greatest coach-player tandem of all time. Seeing Toni come from off-stage to take a bow after all these years was a reminder that while tennis is an individual sport, it’s also so much more to the families who play it together.