Remember the electrifying 2022 French Open final? Coco Gauff clashed with Iga Swiatek in a stormy showdown that ended in favor of the Polish star. But three years later, the fire still burns in the American heart. With Roland Garros approaching on May 25, Gauff declared, “It would be a goal to win this tournament just because I did make the final. So I feel like I have a lot of unfinished business there.” As the hype builds, the French Open’s promo featuring Gauff sparked an unexpected twist; NBA legend Charles Barkley stirred debate, accusing the tournament of rebranding itself as Roland Garros, unaware that it’s always carried that name. And now, tennis fans aren’t holding back!

Coco Gauff has endured a challenging stretch in the 2025 season. After exiting the AO in the quarterfinals, her struggles continued with back-to-back first-round defeats during the Middle East swing. Despite showing signs of resurgence with an R16 finish in both legs of the Sunshine Double, her momentum stalled again. 

A QF finish in Germany brought some promise, and now, Gauff is gearing up for a showdown against Aryna Sabalenka, her last test before heading into the Italian Open and then the much-anticipated French Open.

As the 21-year-old prepares to return to the prestigious Roland Garros, where she was a finalist in 2022, the excitement around her appearance is already creating buzz. A promotional segment featuring Gauff aired recently on TNT, the American broadcaster now covering Roland Garros, and it drew attention for all the unexpected reasons. 

The promo included commentary about the clay-court Slam being streamed on Max, with a voiceover explaining, “Roland Garros from Paris, the clay courts, one of the tennis Grand Slam events, and it’s on TNT, streaming on Max, our first year of that, our coverage.”

However, the promo quickly took a comical turn thanks to two NBA icons. Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley, who were present during the segment, seemed perplexed by the term “Roland Garros.” Barkley quipped, “It’s just that from French Open to Roland Garros, the most stupidest things I’ve ever heard,” showcasing his confusion about the tournament’s original name, which has always been Roland Garros.

The humorous exchange concluded with host Ernie Johnson attempting to keep things on track, chuckling as he remarked, “Probably the last time we’ll run that promo.” The moment, captured by the popular X page Awful Announcing, quickly went viral, adding an unexpected twist to Coco Gauff’s lead-up to Paris.

The post’s rapid dissemination online further resulted in an international chorus of commentary from fans, building upon the initial humorous remarks.

“None of them know tennis”: Fans bashed the commentary as confusion over Roland Garros and French Open names went viral

As soon as the promo clip went viral, fans didn’t hold back! One user commented, “Good Lord, who is that dumb idiot? The name of the French Open is Roland Garros 🤡.” And they weren’t wrong! To honor France’s victory in the 1927 Davis Cup, Stade Français built the Roland Garros stadium to commemorate that tennis triumph. 

Named at the request of Emile Lesueur, then-president of Stade Français, the venue honors his former classmate, Roland Garros, a World War I hero. While English-speaking audiences commonly refer to the tournament as the “French Open,” the global tennis community, including the event itself, widely recognizes it as Roland Garros. Officially, though, the tournament’s name in French is Internationaux de France de tennis.

Another fan joined the online firestorm, joking, “Wait until he hears about Wimbledon,” after watching the clueless commentary unfold. Meanwhile, someone else chimed in to clear things up: “Somebody tell Chuck the event is named both Roland Garros AND the French Open 😭.” 

While Roland Garros had no direct ties to tennis, he was an aviator who famously flew across the Mediterranean in 1913; his legacy as a national hero remains immortalized in this historic venue. Born with a passion for rugby and football, Garros turned to aviation at 21 and became one of France’s early flying legends. Today, beyond the tennis tournament, an airport on the island of ‘Réunion’ also bears his name.

Another fan expressed frustration at the TNT broadcast team: “None of them know tennis good lord🤦🏽‍♂️,” while one viewer took a more critical stance on the delivery: “I get that this NBA crew is popular but can they just learn to lay out like pros for once and not speak during a promo. Jeez, we don’t need the extra chatter all the time. It’s not always cute.”

Now, as the tennis world prepares for the prestigious clay-court major, the legacy of Roland Garros remains strong! On these storied grounds where legends like Rafael Nadal and Chris Evert made history, the naming debate is just noise: the tournament’s spirit continues to thrive in the heart of Paris!