Players are the ultimate globetrotters and they’re used to living out of a suitcase for several weeks in a row and moving from one hotel room to another.
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But it is at the grand slams where they can opt to rent an apartment for two or three weeks and try to gain some sense comfort and normalcy.
Former US Open champion, Sam Stosur, is one of the players who is enjoying staying at an apartment this fortnight in Paris.
“Being able to do my laundry. That’s a big one. Made dinner last night. Just not having to go out all the time to eat. You can have breakfast in your pyjamas if you want.
“You don’t have to go downstairs to the lobby and get dressed and that kind of thing. Those simple, easy things that, yeah, it feels you’re more at home,” Stosur says are some of the perks of staying in an apartment.
“You don’t have to be out and about every single time you want to eat something and get organised.”
Stan Wawrinka rents an apartment in London during the grass season but in Paris, he’s staying at a hotel.
“It depends. I really enjoy the apartment in Wimbledon. That’s also why I play Queen’s, because then I can stay for one month or more there in the same place. But I don’t know. Here I have my routine thing in hotel, nice hotel. I have some friends here. And I never try the apartment in Paris. I just stick with the hotel.”
Sloane Stephens feels safer at hotels. The American said: “I’m scared of life, so I feel I need to be safe. So I think hotels for me work best.”
Another thing that can add some comfort to the players’ hectic lifestyles is their entourage. Some players are known to travel with a huge group around them while others just stick to their small team.
Simona Halep is a player who I’ve often spotted with a huge pack of family and friends and let’s just say Romanian dinners seem very loud and like they are lots of fun.
I asked the world No 3 whether she prefers to have a big entourage even at the slams. She said: “Yes, everywhere I do. I don’t have (a rule) like there you come and there you don’t come. Here I have only my team, only my manager is with me, and a few friends. But my family is home, and if I play good they will come. We will see.”
Unfortunately for her, she lost in the second round on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the clash between Benoit Paire and Fabio Fognini – both players infamous for their explosive personalities – boiled over into the stands as fans started fighting during the second round match.
“I almost stepped in. It’s true that in the crowd there were two people that started fighting. It was a bit of a mess,” said 26-year-old Paire, who beat the 28th-seeded Fognini 6-1, 6-3, 7-5.
“But I was focused on my match. So if there is a problem in the crowd, if there is a donkey walking across the court, I don’t care.”