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World No. 1 Novak Djokovic successfully began the defense of his title at the French Open tennis tournament on Tuesday evening, winning in three sets despite valiant opposition from local favorite Pierre-Hugues Herbert.
The holder of the trophy had a difficult entry into the competition, winning in more than two and a half hours, 6-4, 7-6 (7/3), 6-4 in the evening session.
The Serbian, who has won 24 Grand Slam titles in his career, has still not won a single trophy so far this season.
Djokovic, who seemed regularly annoyed, won precisely in 2h31 min, on a double fault from Herbert. A few points earlier, he had not been able to avoid a fall on the Parisian clay court, visibly without consequences, while rushing towards the net.
On the other side of the net, the thirty-year-old Frenchman played his very first match on the main circuit in 2024. His first even since November 2023.
“Solid”: this is how Djokovic described his performance of the day. “I could have done better, especially on the return, but bravo to him for serving well,” he continued.
“It’s a three-set victory, that’s what matters at this moment. I felt better compared to the last few weeks. I was there, present, focused. I encouraged myself, I am satisfied with my state of mind,” he said, but “it’s only one match.”
Djokovic, who has just celebrated his 37th birthday, is so far experiencing a season light years from his usual standards: he has not yet won a single tournament or even played a final. Its No. 1 position is threatened at the end of the Parisian fortnight.
Entered in Geneva the week before Roland-Garros, he lost in the last four, beaten by the Czech Tomas Machac (then 44th) 6-4, 0-6, 6-1 and ill.
He also recently parted ways with two of the key figures in his team: his coach Goran Ivanisevic and his physical trainer Marco Panichi.
In the second round, Djokovic will face the Spaniard Roberto Carballes (63rd), who defeated the Frenchman Constant Lestienne 6-3, 7-5.
Ruud also passes
For his part, double finalist Casper Ruud began his journey in Paris by easily defeating Brazilian Felipe Meligeni Alves 6-3, 6-4 and 6-3 in the first round.
“I think I’m having a pretty good season on clay,” said the seventh seed.
Ruud, who dominates the ATP circuit with 36 victories so far this season, won the Geneva Open and the Barcelona Open, in addition to being a finalist at the Monte-Carlo Masters, where he won is bowed to the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Ruud has reached the final at Roland Garros for the past two years; he bowed out to Rafael Nadal in 2022 and to Djokovic in 2023.
The final day of the first round took place in cool weather, with the thermometer reading just 16 degrees Celsius. Heavy downpours delayed play for nearly five hours on most courts, with matches continuing only under retractable roofs at the Roland-Garros complex’s two main stadiums.
On the other hand, 11th seed Alex De Minaur ousted Alex Michelsen 6-1, 6-0, 6-2.
2024-05-28 22:16:00
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