Sri Lanka, April 1 -- The French Open Tennis Tournament has announced an 8 percent increase in its prize money this year.

The 2019 prize pot at the Roland Garros tournament has swelled by 8 per cent compared with 2018, to reach a total of US$ 48.4 million, according to an official release published Friday.

The French Open will be the next stop for Tennis on its Grand Slam calendar when it begins on May 26, with the tournament concluding with the men's singles final on June 9th.

Rafael Nadal and Simona Halep are the defending men's and women's singles champions and the clay court event has had a further boost this year with the news Roger Federer will be in the draw for the first time since 2015.

The most significant increase in prize ...