PARIS: Carlos Alcaraz eased into the second round of the French Open after shrugging off pre-tournament concerns about his forearm while fellow seeds Andrey Rublev and Hubert Hurkacz advanced with hard-fought wins as the Grand Slam began on Sunday.

Much of the focus was on title contender Alcaraz’s recently injured right forearm in the build-up to the year’s second major, with the 21-year-old Spaniard saying he still had worries ahead of his clash with American JJ Wolf.

But cheered on by the Philippe Chatrier crowd, the two-time Grand Slam champion, who skipped three of the four tune-up events he planned to participate in, thumped the lucky loser 6-1, 6-2, 6-1.

“I’m really happy to be back here in Paris and competing again. It’s been a difficult month for me […] I love playing tennis,” third seed Alcaraz said. “To stay away from that was hurting me. I tried everything I could to be at 100 per cent in Roland Garros to show my best. I think I did it today.”

Madrid champion and sixth seed Rublev was pushed hard by Japan’s Taro Daniel before securing a 6-2, 6-7(3), 6-3, 7-5 victory, while Polish eighth seed Hurkacz was dragged the distance by another Japanese player in Shintaro Mochizuki.

Hurkacz returned from a rain break to seal a 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3 victory.

French hopes of a first men’s champion since Yannick Noah’s triumph over four decades ago were dampened somewhat earlier as their number one player and 17th seed Ugo Humbert crashed to a 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 defeat by Italian Lorenzo Sonego.

Meanwhile, German Maximilian Marterer, ranked 99, comfortably moved into the next round as he defeated Jordan Thompson of Australia 6-3, 6-2, 6-0, while Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov beat Aleksander Kovacevic of the US 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.

In the women’s fixtures on Sunday, four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka and 2017 winner Jelena Ostapenko also advanced before rain interrupted play, but the action continued on Suzanne Lenglen with a new retractable roof inaugurated earlier in the day deployed immediately.

Osaka’s reward for a battling 6-1, 4-6, 7-5 win over Italian Lucia Bronzetti could be a meeting with defending champion Iga Swiatek in the next round. Top seed Swiatek, chasing a fourth French Open, will face Osaka if the Pole gets past qualifier Leolia Jeanjean on Monday.

Ostapenko continued her strong season by beating Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian 6-4 7-5.

Russian Maria Timofeeva crashed out of the event after losing against experienced Chinese Wang Yafan 6-3, 6-3. Wang, 30, will next face Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine, who downed Australian Ajla Tomljanovic 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, on Monday.

Croatian Donna Vekic benefited from the abandonment of Lesia Tsurenko of Ukraine (6-5) on Sunday and will now face another Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk in the second round.

Kostyuk dropped a set against Brazil’s Laura Pigossi but was able to power through 7-5, 6-7(4-7), 6-4 after a hard-fought match.

Maria Bouzkova of the Czech Republic was also among the winners on Sunday as she cruised past Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova 6-2, 6-4 and next will be up against Croatia’s Jana Fett, who defeated Spaniard Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 6-2, 3-6, 7-5, on Wednesday.

American Sofia Kenin came from a set down to beat German Laura Seigmund 4-6, 6-2, 6-2.

Earlier, thousands of spectators made their way through the gates, with their panama hats and sunglasses put to good use in the bright afternoon sunshine before the umbrellas came out.

With fit-again 14-time champion Rafa Nadal back in Paris but only playing fourth seed Alexander Zverev on Monday, they gathered in large numbers to see Alcaraz showcase his skills.

“I really want to see an American go far but I think Alcaraz is going to follow in Nadal’s footsteps,” said Jake, an American fan from New York attending his first French Open.

“He’s from Spain and he’s been playing really good in the different tournaments he’s been in. He’s won the US Open, he’s won Wimbledon and I think he’s coming for the French Open.”

Published in Dawn, May 27th, 2024