Raonic advances at Roland Garros
Comfortable wins for Djokovic, Nadal at French Open
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
PARIS — Fifth-seeded Milos Raonic is safely through to the second round of the French Open after sweeping past Steve Darcis in straight sets.
The Canadian took just 92 minutes to beat the 38th-ranked Darcis 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 — taking the final game to love.
In women’s action, Montreal’s Francoise Abanda opened with a 6-3, 6-4 win over France’s Tessah Andrianjafitrimo.
Raonic’s big serve was in full effect as he fired 15 aces to Darcis’s three. Raonic won 88 per cent of his first service points, compared to 65 per cent for Darics.
The 26-year-old put the match away with a dominant third set. He broke Darcis in the first game to set the tone, then fired an ace to pen the decisive eighth game before closing with a forehand winner.
Raonic, who grew up in Thornhill, Ont., will next play either Rogerio Dutra Silva of Brazil or Russian Mikhail Youzhny.
Abanda, who entered the main draw through qualifying, had three aces and converted 4-of-8 break point opportunities in her win over Andrianjafitrimo.
Abanda will next face 11th seed and former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark.
Back on the court where he completed his career Grand Slam, Novak Djokovic showed no sign of the crisis of confidence that has affected his game since winning the French Open last year.
With new coach Andre Agassi watchingfromthestands,thesecondseeded Serb dispatched clay-court specialist Marcel Granollers 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the second round of the clay-court major on Monday.
Trailing 0-40 on his serve in the final game, Djokovic won the next five points and sealed the match with a service winner.
Visibly happy with his performance, he then mingled with ball boys at the centre of the court and thanked the crowd.
“Last year, I won here for the first time, it was really a special moment for me on the court, an important moment of my career, I’ll never forget this feeling,” Djokovic said, speaking in French.
Since beating Andy Murray in last year’s final, Djokovic has failed to add any more major titles to his collection. He lost in the third round at Wimbledon, his earliest defeat in a Grand Slam in seven years, was beaten in the first round at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, reached the final of the U.S. Open, and lost early again at the Australian Open.
Djokovic, who lost his No. 1 ranking to Murray last year, has hired Agassi as part of his bid to win RolandGarros and become the first man in the Open era to win each of the four majors twice.
“It’s incredible to have Agassi in my team, every day is special with him, everyday I’m learning something new,” said Djokovic, who split with longtime coach Marian Vajda at the start of the month.
“I’ve changed everyone, but I will not change my wife,” added Djokovic in a smile. “Never.”
Under a hot sun, Djokovic was in a joyful mood on the showcase Philippe Chatrier court. After Granollers hit a delightful shot around the net post and inside the tramlines in the third set, Djokovic clapped and walked to the net to high-five his opponent.
“It was really difficult physically, but I found my best level on important points,” Djokovic said.
There was no hiccup on court Suzanne Lenglen for Rafael Nadal, who started his bid to win a 10th title at Roland Garros with a 6-1, 6-4, 6-1 defeat of Benoit Paire. The 14-time Grand Slam champion produced a clinical display, limiting his mistakes to 18 unforced errors and advancing in less than two hours.
In the women’s draw, defending champion Garbine Muguruza began the day’s play with a confidence-boosting 6-2, 6-4 win over Francesca Schiavone to reach the second round.
Schiavone, the 2010 champion, showed her usual fighting spirit and saved three match points before sending a forehand volley wide.
The fourth-seeded Muguruza won 15 points in a row from being up 3-2 in the first set and broke her Italian opponent five times.