After Coco Gauff and Mirra Andreeva’s successful campaigns at Roland Garros, Novak Djokovic and Novak Djokovic both had strong starts in their quest for a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title on Tuesday.
Three days after winning 100 ATP titles in Geneva, the 38-year-old Djokovic faces the 98th-ranked American Mackenzie McDonald.
Djokovic, who is seeded sixth and playing in Paris for the first time since winning Olympic gold in August of last year, said, “Obviously winning 100th title, that is a nice milestone, and of course, definitely much needed for my game and confidence level coming into Roland Garros.”
I needed to win matches, especially on this surface.
I need to win some matches before the big tournaments because I’m the type of player.
Ronaldo’s “Chapter Is Over,” hints at Al-Nassr Exit, is also worth reading.
Djokovic, a three-time Roland Garros champion, and Alexander Zverev, a year’s runner-up, who defeated American teenager Learner Tien 6-3, 6-3, 6-4, are on the same side of the draw.
Zverev, the third Grand Slam finalist, hopes to go further than he did a year ago when he lost to Carlos Alcaraz in five sets. This is his third defeat.
After suffering a last-16 defeat in Hamburg, his plane was struck by lightning on the way to Paris. His preparation has been far from ideal.
On Court Suzanne Lenglen, the 19-year-old Tien was too strong for the player who defeated Daniil Medvedev in the final 16 of the Australian Open in January.
Zverev will next face Francesco Passaro of Italy or Jesper de Jong of the Netherlands, who has reached at least the semi-finals of each of their four French Open competitions.
Medvedev, a five-time Grand Slam winner, was dumped out in Paris for the sixth time in a dramatic match against Cameron Norrie (7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 1-6, 7-5).
Grigor Dimitrov called it quits after leading American Ethan Quinn by two sets to one at the fourth consecutive Grand Slam event due to a leg injury.
Alex de Minaur, the ninth seed, defeated Laslo Djere of Serbia 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (8/6) to reach the quarter-finals of each of the previous four majors.
Gauff, Andreeva impress ,
Olivia Gadecki of Australia was beaten out by 2022’s Gauff in the women’s draw, 6-2, 6-2.
Gauff, the 2023 US Open champion, reached the finals of this month’s Madrid and Rome tournaments after missing last year’s WTA Finals.
In each of her previous four Roland Garros appearances, the American, age 21, has reached the quarter-finals or better.
The second seed said, “I knew it wasn’t going to be a clean match with how windy it was.”
Depending on which side of the court you were on, “truly,” it was two different matches.
Andreeva, a rising Russian star, is aiming for her first Grand Slam success after winning the first set 3-3 to Spaniard Cristina Bucsa in Dubai and Indian Wells.
The 18-year-old quickly overcame the double-breakback and triumphed over the world number 98 with 6-4, 6-3.
The sixth seed said, “With time, I played better and better, so I felt like closer to the end of the match was playing good, not like in the beginning,”
On Thursday, Andreeva will face American Ashlyn Krueger or Dutch Suzan Lamens in the second round. She made it to the semi-finals last year.
In a mother-to-beetle clash on Court 6, two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka wrested Belgium’s Yanina Wickmayer, who will retire after Wimbledon, 6-0, 6-0.
Sofia Kenin, the finalist for the 2020 championship, defeated Frenchman Varvara Gracheva 6-3, 6-1, as well.
Source: Channels TV
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