Djokovic breezes into French Open second round • Stephens puts down marker
PARIS (Reuters) – Novak Djokovic launched his quest for a record-breaking 23rd men’s Grand Slam singles title with a no-nonsense 6-3, 6-2, 7-6(1) first-round victory over debutant Aleksandar Kovacevic on at the French Open on Monday.
The two-time champion breezed through the first two sets before encountering resistance from the 24-year-old American whose lack of experience then showed in the tiebreak on the world’s biggest clay court.
Djokovic ended it with a sizzling service return on his first match point.
“It’s always a pleasure to come back here, one of the best tournaments in the world,” said Djokovic, who made his Roland Garros debut in 2005.
“I’m very motivated to go far here, all the way I hope.”
He will next face Hungarian journeyman Marton Fucsovics for a place in the third round.
Earlier, veteran Fabio Fognini of Italy rolled back the years to take down 10th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 in the first round as the Canadian became the first top-10 player in the men’s draw to exit the tournament.
Meanwhile, Benoit Paire’s long run without a win on the main tour continued when he lost 5-7, 4-6, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 to British 14th seed Cameron Norrie in the first round.
The mercurial Paire, whose last win in the main draw of top-tier tournament dates back to August, made the most of his wildcard invitation, only to be punished for 81 unforced errors on court Suzanne Lenglen.
Paire, whose hot temper has often got him into trouble, was unusually composed and dished out 70 winners,
but the result was a third consecutive in the first round at Roland Garros for the world No. 149.
On the women’s side, Sloane Stephens relished every moment she spent on her favorite court in the world as the she cruised to a 6-0, 6-4 firstround victory over former world No. 1
Karolina Pliskova to put down an early marker.
The 30-year-old, runner-up in Paris five years ago, gave erratic Pliskova no chance on the main Philippe-Chatrier court, speeding through the first set in 49 minutes before the Czech recovered in the second.
But she kept piling up unforced errors – 31 in total – as well as half a dozen double faults, giving Stephens, ranked in the past as high as third in the world, the chance to race back from 4-3 down, break her twice and rattle off the next three games to seal victory.
“This is my favorite court in the world and I am super happy to be back,” said Stephens, currently ranked 30th.
The American, who won her only Grand Slam at the 2017 US Open, was also a quarterfinalist in Paris last year despite struggling for form.
Stephens came into the tournament in improving form on clay after winning her first WTA 125 event and reaching the semifinals on clay in Rabat last week.
Although everything went smoothly on court for the American, she said racist abuse of players had got worse.
“Yes, it’s obviously been a problem my entire career,” said Stephens, who is Black. “It has never stopped. If anything, it’s only gotten worse.”
Also, former French Open runner-up Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova celebrated her return to Roland Garros with a dominant win over Czech Linda Fruhvirtova and said she had feared for her career a year ago due to a knee problem.
The 31-year-old enjoyed her best run at a Grand Slam at the 2021 tournament before losing to Czech Barbora Krejcikova in the final and skipped last year’s edition as well as the second half of the season to nurse an injury that limited her playing time.
Pavlyuchenkova said she was forced to go through extensive rehabilitation and stopped playing tennis completely for around five months, with the lack of physical activity during the process leaving her out of shape.
“It was a rollercoaster of emotions because I was sad. I was close to crying, but also sad because I wasn’t sure what comes after,” Pavlyuchenkova told reporters after her 6-2 6-2 victory over the 18-year-old Fruhvirtova.
Earlier, Australian Open quarterfinalist Donna Vekic beat Ukrainian qualifier Daria Yastremska in 6-2, 7-5 and 20th seed Madison Keys saw off Estonian Kaia Kanepi in three sets.