Serena survives scare; Nadal, Djokovic roll on

PARIS (AP) — Novak Djokovic was more concerned with a loss of concentration than a loss of footing Thursday, as the top-ranked Serb reached the third round of the French Open by beating Gilles Muller 6-1, 6-4, 6-4.

The eight-time Grand Slam champion, who has lost two French Open finals, slipped near the end of the second set and needed treatment for several minutes on his right groin area.

“Well, thankfully it’s nothing major. So it’s not (a) concern for the next match,” Djokovic said. “I made a couple of slides that were quite, I’d say, unusual, with change of directions.”

Instead he berated himself for a sloppy mistake during the third set. When casually waiting for Muller’s shot to land out, he just let the ball glance off his racket and lost the point. “I’m expecting a long talk with my two coaches,” he said. “Never,

never, ever happened (before), and it should never happen again to me.”

Djokovic joined nine-time champion Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and David Ferrer in the third round.

Serena Williams also had a fright, but she avoided a repeat second-round exit by beating Anna-Lena Friedsam of Germany 5-7, 6-3, 6-3.

Djokovic followed Williams on Court Suzanne Lenglen and fans were treated to some more drama.

As he prepared to serve for the second set, Djokovic sat in his chair and called for medical assistance. Moments earlier, his left foot had slipped as he played a shot from the back of the court, throwing the weight of his body onto his right leg.

After receiving treatment, Djokovic pulled out a towel and unfurled it on the clay. With his orange shirt, he looked almost camouflaged as he lay on his back, before flipping over to his front.

The sixth-seeded Nadal, who stood out on center court dressed in electric blue in somewhat gloomy and overcast conditions, was not always at his best during his 6-4, 6-3, 6-1 win over Nicolas Almagro of Spain.

“The score is easier than what the match was like,” said Nadal, who will next play Andrey Kuznetsov of Russia. “My footwork was better. I felt better than during the first round.”

The third-seeded Murray beat Joao Sousa of Portugal 6-2, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 and Ferrer – the 2013 runner-up – progressed with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 win against Spanish countryman Daniel GimenoTraver.