Not here to Djoke
> Djokovic makes winning French Open start on Agassi’s watch, Nadal brushes aside Paire; Muguruza strolls
DEFENDING champion Novak Djokovic enjoyed a winning French Open start under new coach Andre Agassi yesterday, cruising past Spain’s Marcel Granollers 6-3 6-4 6-2 in the first round.
The 12-times grand slam champion parted company with his entire coaching team earlier this month after a string of disappointing results before inviting American great Agassi to work with him during the French Open.
The 30-year-old Serbian, without a tour title since January, found little resistance from Granollers, grabbing two breaks early on in the first set as he chased the 77th-ranked Spaniard around the court.
With Agassi, sporting a black t-shirt and sunglasses, quietly sitting in the stands along with the Serb’s entourage, it was a similar story early in the second set with the world No. 2 returning everything Granollers tried to throw at him.
He again went 4-1 up before a wobble saw him fail to convert eight set points at 5-3.
Djokovic kept his cool to earn the second set and pounced on the Spaniard’s accumulating mistakes in the third set to seal victory on his first match point.
With Agassi making a fast exit from the stands at the conclusion of the match, Djokovic heaped praise on his new coach.
“It is an incredible honour and good luck to have him with me on the team,” Djokovic said. “Every day is special with him. I am learning something every day.”
“I changed everyone (coaches). But I will not change my wife. My wife never.”
Rafael Nadal smoothly negotiated the potential stumbling block presented by Frenchman Benoit Paire yesterday, launching his bid for a 10th French Open trophy with a largely routine 6-1 6-4 6-1 win.
The heavy favourite for the title looked in imperious form as he steamed through the first set in under half an hour.
Paire, described prior to their encounter on Court Suzanne Lenglen as a dangerous opponent by Nadal, played with more freedom in a closer second set as the Spaniard lost his edge. Trading baseline rallies, they exchanged breaks to leave the Frenchman leading 4-3.
But Nadal then pulled clear and, with Paire periodically clutching his stomach after a medical time out, the Spaniard took nine of the last 10 games to close out the match in just under two hours.
Reigning French Open champion Garbine Muguruza breezed into the second round, while Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic prepared to launch their title bids later yesterday.
Muguruza’s middling form this season saw her arrive in Paris with just three wins on clay, but the Spaniard dispatched 2010 Roland Garros champion Francesca Schiavone 6-2, 64.
The fourth seed will meet Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit for a place in round three as Schiavone, who turns 37 in June, bid farewell to the tournament for the final time ahead of her retirement at the end of the year.
“I cannot believe in the first round we have two ex-champions. Not only that but Francesca is a legend and I was very excited to play on Philippe Chatrier court with her,” said Muguruza.
Muguruza defeated Serena Williams to win her maiden Grand Slam a year ago, but the 23-year-old needs to return to the final to stay in the world’s top 10.
Canadian fifth seed Milos Raonic raced into round two with a routine 63, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Steve Darcis of Belgium.
Raonic, whose best run at the French Open came when he made the 2014 quarterfinals, fired 15 aces and 44 winners to book a meeting with Mikhail Youzhny of Russia or Brazil’s Rogerio Dutra Silva. – AFP/ Reuters
happy that I’m not only playing well in Asia but also in the US, and very glad that a lot of the Chinese came today to support me,” she said. The 27-year-old Feng’s victory was her seventh LPGA triumph and her first since last year’s Japan Classic – one of two titles she claimed in 2016. She is also a two-time winner of the Sime Darby in Kuala Lumpur. Feng, who earned a bronze medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics last year, was up by four strokes with four to play before her late difficulties. The world’s seventh ranked player has renewed confidence in her game as she posted four sub-70 rounds this week. Lee applied the pressure with her eighth birdie of the day at 17 en route to a seven-under 65 and Park closed with a six-under 66. South Korean Lee Jeong-Eun carded a final-round 67 to share fourth place on 271 with American Lizette Salas, who signed for a 69. Minjee Lee lost her chance at a birdie on No. 18 when her approach missed the mark. She did manage to save par and preserve her bogey-free round.