Fittingly, the last first-round match of Roland Garros between Félix Auger-Aliassime and Daniel Altmaier went the distance, with the Canadian fourth seed coming out on top after four hours and 16 minutes on Tuesday.
In fact, Day 3 at the French Open, which also happened to be the 70th anniversary of Althea Gibson’s historic tournament victory in Paris in 1956, featured six winners – debutant Moïse Kouame, defending champion Coco Gauff, Naomi Osaka, Madison Keys, Victoria Mboko all secured straight-sets wins.
In matchups we hate to see, especially in the early rounds, Gauff got the better of friend and compatriot Taylor Townsend. Townsend’s attentions now turn to the doubles where she and partner Katerina Siniakova are the top seeds.
What about the other first-round exits? Read on to find out how the likes of Gabriel Diallo, Sloane Stephens, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, Gaël Monfils and Akasha Urhobo got on.
Gabriel Diallo
Diallo was forced to retire from his match against Australia’s James Duckworth after 67 minutes on court Sunday. The Canadian was trailing 6-3, 4-1. Diallo, who was carrying an injury coming into the second major of the year, explained his reasons for retiring in an Instagram post: “Hey guys, I’ve been dealing with some back issues for the last couple weeks which got me sidelined. We’re trying to find solutions to come back playing 100% hopefully soon. Thank you for all the messages.” Here’s hoping Diallo, a winner on the grass in ‘s-Hertogenbosch last year, gets over his injury woes in time for Wimbledon.
Sloane Stephens
The 2018 runner-up successfully came through qualifying in Paris but was unable to carry that winning momentum through to the main draw. Stephens fell to Sara Bejlek in straight sets – 6-3, 6-2 – but was immediately back to work, swapping her racket for a TNT Sports microphone. For a second year in a row, the 2017 US Open champion is part of the team as a contributing commentator and doing a fine job as per.
Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard
Mpetshi Perricard arguably had the toughest first round of the lot after being drawn against 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic. The Frenchman, cheered on by good friend Arthur Fils, won the opening set 7-5 and had his moments in the second before losing it by the same scoreline. With Court Philippe-Chatrier rocking, Djokovic’s experience eventually told and the Serb closed out the match in four sets – 5-7, 7-5, 6-1, 6-4. A performance like that will give Mpetshi Perricard a lot of confidence as grass-court season approaches one feels.
Gaël Monfils
Monfils’ final match at Roland Garros was played out across five sets and in typical fashion, La Monf mounted a comeback from two sets to love down against fellow French wildcard Hugo Gaston. Monfils, who is retiring at the end of the season, after a remarkable career spanning over 21 years, wowed the Roland Garros crowd for one last time in a match that lasted three hours and 22 minutes.
After going down valiantly 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 2-6, 6-0, Monfils was presented with a Roland Garros award by tournament director, Amélie Mauresmo and the president of French tennis federation, Gilles Moretton in a post-match ceremony. An emotional Monfils then addressed his family, paying respect to his parents, brother Daryl and wife Elina Svitolina. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Richard Gasquet and Gilles Simon also joined their fellow Musketeer on the court.
Akasha Urhobo
Urhobo is someone we will be seeing a lot more of in the near future. The American world No 185 nearly secured her first win at a Grand Slam with a mature display against Katie Boulter, the British world No 71 ranked. Nineteen-year-old Urhobo, who was a wildcard recipient, went down in three tight sets – 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 – but showed signs she can hold her own not only clay but against an established, more experienced WTA campaigner.