Montgomery, Basavareddy among players to watch in Roland Garros Wild Card Challenge

The road to Paris begins this week for Americans competing in the USTA’s 2025 Roland Garros Wild Card Challenge.

Running from March 31 to May 4, the Challenge will award an American man and woman a French Open main-draw singles wild card based on clay-court tournament results over the five-week span. The wild cards will be granted to the American players who earn the most ranking points at their three best events during the window.

As the action begins this week, USTA.com is highlighting the players to watch.

Some players listed below may earn direct entry into Roland Garros, which is reserved for the 104 highest-ranked players on the entry list at the April 14 cutoff date—though players entering with protected rankings also count against that allotment of 104. Last year at Roland Garros, for example, eight women and five men used protected rankings to enter.

Americans who otherwise earn direct entry into the French Open, or those who enter with a protected ranking, are not eligible for the Challenge. Should the player with the highest number of challenge points earn direct entry, the wild card will go to the next eligible American in the Challenge points standings. In the event of a tie, the player with the best ATP or WTA singles ranking on Monday, May 5, will earn the wild card.

Iva Jovic (Age 17, No. 150)

Iva Jovic jumped to a career-high WTA ranking of No. 145 in March after notching a first-round victory in her WTA 1000 debut in Indian Wells, where she pushed two-time major finalist Jasmine Paolini to three sets in the second round. The California native won back-to-back ITF World Tennis Tour titles in her home state last fall after advancing to the US Open second round in an eye-catching Grand Slam debut. 

Whitney Osuigwe (Age 22, No. 190)

Having reached the brink of the Top 100 in 2019 behind a string of deep ITF runs, Whitney Osuigwe is trending back in that direction after winning two ITF titles and reaching two additional finals in the past five months. She finished runner-up at two clay-court USTA Pro Circuit events in Florida this January, in Palm Coast and Vero Beach. Having competed three times in the US Open main draw (2018-20) and twice at the Australian Open (2019, 2021), Osuigwe is seeking her Roland Garros main-draw debut.

Clervie Ngounoue (Age 18, No. 241)

Former junior world No. 1 and 2023 Wimbledon girl’s singles champion Clervie Ngounoue hopes to make her second Grand Slam main-draw appearance after she competed at the 2023 US Open as a wild card. The 18-year-old’s first professional title came on clay last January at the USTA Pro Circuit event in Naples, Fla.; she now holds four ITF singles crowns. Ngounoue enters the clay swing on the heels of a successful Indian Wells qualifying campaign, after which she pushed former world No. 1 Victoria Azarenka throughout two tight sets in her WTA 1000 debut.

Elizabeth Mandlik (Age 23, No. 235)

The daughter of four-time Grand Slam singles champion Hana Mandlikova, Elizabeth Mandlik broke into the Top 100 in 2023 shortly after making her Roland Garros debut. Mandlik opened her 2025 campaign with two deep clay-court runs on the USTA Pro Circuit: After reaching the semifinals in Naples, she claimed her first ITF title since 2022 in Palm Coast, Fla.

Nishesh Basavareddy (Age 19, World No. 108)

Former Stanford star Nishesh Basavareddy burst onto the Grand Slam scene at the Australian Open when he took a set off Novak Djokovic in his major main-draw debut, earning praise from the 24-time Grand Slam champion in the process. The week prior, he advanced to his first ATP Tour semifinal in Auckland, beating Top 50 players Alejandro Tabilo and Alex Michelsen on the way. Basavareddy won his first two Challenger titles in 2024 but has competed exclusively at the ATP Tour level through the first three months of 2025.

Brandon Holt (Age 26, No. 115)

The son of two-time US Open champion and former WTA world No. 1 Tracy Austin, Brandon Holt famously upset Taylor Fritz at the 2022 US Open for his first tour-level victory. The former USC star is now nearing a Top 100 breakthrough after a strong start to the 2025 season on the ATP Challenger Tour: He won his first two titles at that level and also notched a final and semifinal run across the first three months of the year.

Ethan Quinn (Age 21, No. 130)

Ethan Quinn turned pro shortly after winning the 2023 NCAA singles title as a Georgia Bulldog. He made his major debut as a wild card at that year’s US Open and won his first Challenger title in November 2024, beating Basavareddy in the Champaign, Ill., final. Quinn has notched two tour-level wins this season (Delray Beach, Dallas) and successfully qualified for the Miami and Indian Wells ATP Masters 1000s, leading to a career-high ranking of No. 130.

Murphy Cassone (Age 22, No. 219)

A former college star at Arizona State, Murphy Cassone turned pro in January, forgoing his senior season with the Sun Devils. Boosted by his first ATP Challenger Tour title last October in Calgary, Canada, the 22-year-old hit a career-high of world No. 219 in early March. He has enjoyed more Challenger success this season, reaching three semifinals and two additional quarterfinals at that level.