Thanasi Kokkinakis will be playing at the 2023 Roland Garros thanks to receiving a wild card.
The Australian entered the event's entry list as world no. 111, and at the moment, he would need 12 more withdrawals from his colleagues on the ATP Tour to get into the main draw. Otherwise, Kokkinakis would have to fight his way through the qualifying.
The 27-year-old received Tennis Australia's reciprocal wildcard, which is a wild card awarded by Tennis Australia to players at Roland Garros or US Open, in an exchange for the same thing for FFT and USTA at their event in Melbourne.
Only recently, Kokkinakis made his first-ever main draw appearance at the Italian Open and now he will play for the fourth time in his career also at the Roland Garros. Previously, he won two matches while losing three times, with his last two main draw participations resulting in a first-round loss.
"It feels great to be back on the clay, I feel like I'm playing well at the moment, and have some great memories playing at the French. I really appreciate getting the wildcard and can't wait to compete in Paris again."
Receiving Tennis Australia's reciprocal wildcard was also one WTA player, Kim Birrell. For the 25-year-old it will be a debut at a Grand Slam event outside of her home country, and she's also excited to play in Paris.
"I'm so excited to be playing main draw of Roland Garros this year. It's an honour to receive the wildcard, and I can't wait to be out there competing and playing my heart out on one of the world's biggest stages. I'm proud of the hard work I've put in and the progress I've made, especially over the last few months, and I'm feeling confident that I can produce my best tennis against the best players in the world."
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