Rafael Nadal of Spain plays a shot to Quentin Halys of France during their men’s singles match at the French Open at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, France, yesterday.
AFP/Paris
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal eased closer to a French Open quarter-final showdown yesterday while two-time champion Serena Williams blitzed her way into the second round.
But there were opening defeats for women’s tour poster girl Eugenie Bouchard, the sixth seed, as well as men’s 10th-seeded Grigor Dimitrov.
Top seed Djokovic, bidding to win a first French Open and become just the eighth man to complete the career Grand Slam, defeated experienced Jarkko Nieminen 6-2, 7-5, 6-2.
The victory over the 33-year-old Finn, who was playing in his 50th major, was Djokovic’s 23rd consecutive win this year.
The 28-year-old Serb, seeded to meet nine-time champion Nadal in the last eight, will next face either Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller or Paolo Lorenzi of Italy.
“I always feel a lot of emotion when I get back on this court,” said Australian Open champion Djokovic, the runner-up to Nadal last year and in 2012.
“This year I’m playing very well so far and I hope I will get the confidence I have had since the beginning of the year.”
Nadal opened his bid for a 10th title with a 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 win over world number 296 Quentin Halys.
Nadal, seeded a humble six this year—his lowest for a decade—needed just one hour and 50 minutes to see off the 18-year-old and record his 67th career win at Roland Garros.
The defending champion came into the tournament without a European claycourt title for the first time since 2005 and with many in the sport writing him off as a spent force.
But in a cheeky riposte to his critics, the 14-time major winner played with the number ‘9’ stitched into the heels of his tennis shoes to remind people of his astonishing record at the tournament where he has only ever lost once.
300 for Ferrer
Halys, making his Grand Slam debut, was broken five times and made 52 unforced errors.
Nadal goes on to face compatriot Nicolas Almagro for a place in the last 32.
“I played well. I changed direction with my forehands down the line. After the first three games I was moving better,” said Nadal.
“I am here to play well and compete. That is my mentality and the goal is always the same.”
Women’s top seed and world number one Serena Williams won 6-2, 6-3 in just 59 minutes against Czech qualifier Andrea Hlavackova.
The 2002 and 2013 champion, and 19-time major winner, next faces Anna-Lena Friedsam of Germany.
Williams has now won 58 of her 59 career first-round matches at the majors.
Canadian sixth seed Bouchard, a semi-finalist in 2014, crashed out at the hands of France’s Kristina Mladenovic.
Bouchard went down 6-4, 6-4 to the world number 44, her eighth defeat in her last nine matches.
Mladenovic, 22, goes on to face Danka Kovinic of Montenegro. “Everyone has highs and lows in their career. This is a little bit of a low point for me,” said 21-year-old Bouchard who also has a huge number of points to defend at Wimbledon next month having reached the final in 2014.
Also going out was Bulgarian 10th seed Dimitrov who suffered his second successive first-round exit in Paris, losing 7-6 (9/7), 6-2, 6-3 to Jack Sock of the US.
Wimbledon champion and fourth seed Petra Kvitova needed two and a half hours to see off New Zealand’s world number 80 Marina Erakovic 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, getting broken six times and committing 47 unforced errors.
The 25-year-old goes on to face Silvia Soler-Espinosa of Spain.
Serbian 25th seed Jelena Jankovic, a three-time semi-finalist, suffered her first opening-round loss in a decade when she went down 6-3, 6-4 to Bulgarian qualifier Sesil Karatantcheva.
Spain’s David Ferrer won his 300th claycourt match when he swept past Slovakia’s Lukas Lacko, 6-1, 6-3, 6-1.
Croatia’s Marin Cilic, the ninth-seeded US Open champion, defeated Robin Haase of the Netherlands 6-2, 6-4, 6-2.
RESULTS
Men: First round: Novak Djokovic (SRB x1) bt Jarkko Nieminen (FIN) 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 Richard Gasquet (FRA x20) bt Germain Gigounon (BEL) 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 Carlos Berlocq (ARG) bt Illya Marchenko (UKR) 4-6, 3-6, 6-3, 7-5, 6-2 Lu Yen-Hsun (TPE) bt Blaz Kavcic (SLO) 6-7 (4/7), 6-1, 6-1, 7-5 Kevin Anderson (RSA x15) bt Tim Smyczek (USA) 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 Jack Sock (USA) bt Grigor Dimitrov (BUL x10) 7-6 (9/7), 6-2, 6-3 Pablo Carreٌo-Busta (ESP) bt Vيctor Estrella (DOM) 6-3, 6-1, 6-0 Nicolas Almagro (ESP) bt Aleksandr Dolgopolov (UKR) 6-3, 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (8/6) Rafael Nadal (ESP x6) bt Quentin Halys (FRA) 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 Joمo Sousa (POR) bt Vasek Pospisil (CAN) 6-3, 7-6 (7/5), 6-1 Jérémy Chardy (FRA) bt Michael Berrer (GER) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 John Isner (USA x16) bt Andreas Seppi (ITA) 7-5, 6-2, 6-3 Marin Cilic (CRO x9) bt Robin Haase (NED) 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 Andrea Arnaboldi (ITA) bt James Duckworth (AUS) 4-6, 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/2), 6-0 Jerzy Janowicz (POL) bt Maxime Hamou (FRA) 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 Leonardo Mayer (ARG x23) bt Jirي Vesel (CZE) 3-6, 7-6 (8/6), 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 Daniel Gimeno-Traver (ESP) bt Joمo Souza (BRA) 7-6 (7/5), 6-4, 6-4 David Ferrer (ESP x7) bt Lukلs Lacko (SVK) 6-1, 6-3, 6-1
Women: First round: Serena Williams (USA x1) bt Andrea Hlavلckovل (CZE) 6-2, 6-3 Anna-Lena Friedsam (GER) bt Alexa Glatch (USA) 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 Andrea Petkovic (GER x10) bt Shelby Rogers (USA) 6-2, 6-1 Sesil Karatantcheva (BUL) bt Jelena Jankovic (SRB x25) 6-3, 6-4 Irina Falconi (USA) bt Manon Arcangioli (FRA) 6-2, 6-0 Julia Goerges (GER) bt Coco Vandeweghe (USA) 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 Caroline Wozniacki (DEN x5) bt Karin Knapp (ITA) 6-3, 6-0 Petra Kvitova (CZE x4) bt Marina Erakovic (NZL) 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 Silvia Soler (ESP) bt Pauline Parmentier (FRA) 6-4, 6-3 Timea Bacsinszky (SUI x23) bt Lara Arruabarrena (ESP) 6-3, 6-4 Tereza Smitkovل (CZE) bt Taylor Townsend (USA) 6-3, 6-4 Madison Keys (USA x16) bt Varvara Lepchenko (USA) 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 Francesca Schiavone (ITA) bt Wang Qiang (CHN) 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 Svetlana Kuznetsova (RUS x18) bt Kiki Bertens (NED) 6-1, 4-6, 6-2 Zarina Diyas (KAZ x32) bt Dinah Pfizenmaier (GER) 6-4, 6-1 Alison Van Uytvanck (BEL) bt Anna Karolيna Schmiedlovل (SVK) 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (9/7) Kristina Mladenovic (FRA) bt Eugénie Bouchard (CAN x6) 6-4, 6-4
Today’s Order of Play
(x denotes seeded player; 0900GMT start):
Court Philippe Chatrier
Vitalia Diatchenko (RUS) v Maria Sharapova (RUS x2) Kei Nishikori (JPN x5) v Thomaz Bellucci (BRA) Gaël Monfils (FRA x13) v Diego Schwartzman (ARG) Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP x8) v Virginie Razzano (FRA)
Court Suzanne Lenglen
Samantha Stosur (AUS x26) v Amandine Hesse (FRA) Marcel Granollers (ESP) v Roger Federer (SUI x2) Mirjana Lucic-Baroni (CRO) v Simona Halep (ROM x3)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA x14) v Dudi Sela (ISR)
Court One
Martin Klizan (SVK) v Gilles Simon (FRA x12) Alize Cornet (FRA x29) v Alexandra Dulgheru (ROM) Radek Stepanek (CZE) v Tomas Berdych (CZE x4)
Ana Ivanovic (SRB x7) v Misaki Doi (JPN)
