Who is Karman Kaur Thandi? The former Indian No. 1 is all set to make her debut at the French Open

Karman Kaur Thandi enters the qualifying draw for the 2026 French Open in Paris with the goal of making a long-awaited breakthrough at Grand Slam level. The former Indian No. 1 earned a place in the qualifiers with a protected ranking after an injury-plagued spell that pushed her outside the top 1000 in the world rankings.

Thandi, currently ranked 1,488, will face France’s Harmony Tan (No. 225) in the opening round of qualifying. Both players are unseeded, so the first round match is even. The match also has added significance as Thandi seeks to advance past Grand Slam qualification for the first time in her career.

against Tan, Thandi will look to rely on her aggressive base game and first-strike-driven tennis that dictates early forays. Meanwhile, Tan is expected to counter with consistency, variety and strong clay court coverage.

The winner will advance deeper into the qualifying draw and take a step closer to a coveted spot in the main draw at Roland Garros 2026.

WHO IS KARMAN KAUR THANDI?

Karman Thandi is one of India’s leading female tennis players of the modern era and a former national number one singles player. Born in 1998 in New Delhi, she started playing tennis at the age of eight and gradually progressed through the junior and senior ITF circuits.

In August 2018, she reached a top WTA singles ranking of 196, becoming only the sixth Indian woman to break into the top 200, joining Ankita Raina, Sania Mirza, Nirupama Sanjeev, Shikha Uberoi and Sunitha Rao.

Thandi has won several singles and doubles titles on the ITF circuit, including her first singles crown in Hong Kong in 2018. She has also won several doubles titles, including at the WTA Challenger level, and has been a regular member of India’s Billie Jean King Cup team, participating in both singles and doubles draws.

In junior tennis, she reached a career-high ITF junior ranking of No. 32, underscoring her early promise with strong performances across Asia. However, on the Grand Slam stage, Thandi has yet to make a breakthrough into the main draw. She has performed primarily in the qualifying rounds, including the Australian Open (2019 and 2021) and the US Open (2023), where she competed but did not advance to the main draw.

Despite not yet featuring in the Grand Slam main draw, Thandi remains among a select group of Indian women who consistently compete at the higher levels of the ITF and WTA circuits and maintain a presence on the international tennis scene.

– The end

Issued by:

sabyasachi chowdhury

Published on:

18 May 2026 23:26 IST