King of clay holds court
Ruthless Rafa advances as Djokovic sees off Nieminen
R afael Nadal began his campaign for a 10th French Open with a 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 win over world No. 296 Quentin Halys yesterday. The brutal, quick-fire demolition of the 18-year-old Frenchman threw down the gauntlet to top seed Novak Djokovic, who defeated Finnish veteran Jarkko Nieminen in straight sets 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 in the first round.
Nadal, seeded a humble six this year — his lowest for a decade — needed just one hour and 50 minutes to record his 67th career win at Roland Garros.
The 28-year-old Spaniard came into the tournament without a European clay court title for the first time since 2005 and with many in the sport writing him off as a spent force.
But in a cheeky riposte to his critics, the 14-time major winner played with the No. 9 stitched into the heels of his tennis shoes to remind people of his astonishing record at the tournament where he has only ever lost once. Halys, making his Grand Slam debut, was broken five times and made 52 unforced errors.
Nadal, meanwhile, goes on to face either compatriot Nicolas Almagro, who Ukraine’s Alexandr Dolgopolov in four sets, for a place in the last 32.
“He was aggressive and took risks. This is the way of modern players. They hit the ball stronger and quicker because they go for winners all the time. But that means there are more mistakes,” said Nadal.
“I played well. I changed direction with my forehands down the line. After the first three games I was moving better. “I have had ups and downs this season. I am trying to avoid that happening here. But I am here to play well and compete. That is my mentality and the goal is always the same.”
On a cloudy Paris day, Djokovic breezed through the opening set after breaking immediately but it was not all plain sailing for the world No. 1 on Court Philippe Chatrier as Nieminen broke to lead 3-1 in the second set. The 33-yearold left-hander, appearing at his 50th major, found himself serving for the second set at 5-3 up only to blow his chance by losing the next four games.
After that, the final outcome was in little doubt and Djokovic secured victory on his fourth match point to make it 23 consecutive wins since losing to Roger Federer in the final in Dubai three months ago.
Djokovic, who is seeking to win the French Open title for the first time and become just the eighth player to claim a career Grand Slam, will now face either Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller or Paolo Lorenzi of Italy in the second round.
Spain’s David Ferrer won his 300th clay court match when he swept past Slovakia’s Lukas Lacko. Ferrer, 33 and seeded seven, won 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 to become just the second active player behind Nadal to win 300 matches on the surface.
Ferrer’s win against Lacko is his 37th in Roland Garros, making him the second-ranked Spaniard in total match wins at the French Open.
A loss by Venus Williams in the first round at a Grand Slam is no longer the rarity it once was.
And, as it happens, the woman who beat Williams at the French Open yesterday, Sloane Stephens, is making a concerted effort, at her coach’s behest, to focus less on who is on the other side of the net.
Still, it was hard not to see the 22-year-old Stephens’ 7-6 (5), 6-1 dismissal of seven-time major champion Williams, who at 34 was the oldest woman in the field, as a statement about the directions their respective careers are heading.
For the 15th-seeded Williams, it was her second opening defeat in three years at Roland Garros. It also was the fifth time in the last 13 Grand Slam tournaments she’s entered that she exited in the first round. Before that stretch, it happened once in 37 majors.
Williams didn’t show up for a news conference, meaning she could face a fine. Instead, she issued a five-sentence statement that read in part: “When you arrive at any tournament, you hope you will have a chance to work your way into the event, but I didn’t have that opportunity — she just played better than me today.”
That is true.
Passion to perform
The 40th-ranked Stephens, who has reached the French Open’s fourth round the last three years, was consistently strong from the baseline, making only 14 unforced errors to Williams’ 30.
“I want her to play with a sense of joy ... and play everything as well as she can, relentlessly, and not be concerned with the result. Let the result take care of itself. And she did a good job of that today,” said Stephens’ coach, Nick Saviano.
“I have noticed that missing. ... For any athlete, in any sport, at any high level, they must have that passion and the joy to perform,” Saviano explained. “Otherwise, it becomes onerous. It becomes too much of a job, so to speak.”
The biggest victory of Stephens’ career came at the 2013 Australian Open, when she defeated Williams’ younger sister Serena en route to the semifinals. This was the first time Stephens had faced Venus Williams, other than beating her in an exhibition as a teen.
“But,” Stephens said, “I don’t think that really counts.”
Stephens was reserved during her on-court interview, referring to Williams as “someone we all looked up to for so long,” but hardly celebrating as if this meant a lot to her. “I think she’s pleased. But she wants to perform well every day. She doesn’t want to make a big deal out of one match,” Saviano said. “And she shouldn’t.”