Of the 14 Frenchmen engaged during the first day, Monday, six passed, as did several seeds.
While the main draw won’t officially kick off until next Sunday, Roland-Garros has already started for many players during qualifying, which began on Monday 22 May. Fourteen French, as well as several names in world tennis, rushed to try to pass the three rounds necessary for access to the main draw, which only Geoffrey Blancaneaux had succeeded last year among the French. And it was a mixed first day for the tricolor contingent.
Pouille, Added and Gueymard-Wayenburg in the 2nd round
Among the men, they were six Tricolores engaged on Monday, and three managed to pass the obstacle. Recipient of an invitation (wild-card), the 24-year-old Frenchman Dan Added, 254th in the world, was the first qualifier of the day by dismissing Maximilian Marterer, 144th in the world, in two sets (6-4, 6-4). He was followed by Sascha Gueymard-Wayenburg, 392nd in the world, who achieved a real performance by eliminating Denis Kudla, 139th in the world, who had reached the round of 16 at Wimbledon in 2015 (6-4, 6-3).
The two young Tricolores were imitated shortly before 11 p.m. by Lucas Pouille. The former 10th in the world, down to 670th today after physical and personal problems, remembered the good memories of the Porte d’Auteuil, where he had reached the 3rd round in 2017 and 2018. The Northerner dismissed Tomas Machac in two convincing sets (7-5, 6-3). “I arrived at Roland with very few benchmarks, certainties, tournaments, almost zero wins… But I had worked well. I’m very happy with the match I’m playing today because it’s a very good player who had great results”explained the 29-year-old Frenchman, who will face the Taiwanese Chun-Hsin Tseng, 215th in the world, in the second round.
It is however already over for Enzo Couacaud. The 156th in the world, who had spent a round at Roland-Garros in 2021, could not get rid of the Austrian Filip Misolic (3-6, 7-6, 6-2). Same sentence for Titouan Droguet. The 21-year-old player (276th in the world) cracked the tie-break against Andrea Vavassori, 148th at ATP (6-3, 7-6). At the end of the day, the Parisian Antoine Ghibaudo, 725th in the world, did not go the distance in the third set against the Slovak Norbert Gombos (6-7, 6-3, 6-1).
Ferro scraps but passes, first for Radovanovic
In the ladies’ draw, one of the eight French women entered on Monday was already guaranteed to be in the second round since Nina Radovanovic (565th) and Lois Boisson (485th) faced each other. It is the first, victorious in three sets of her compatriot (1-6, 6-2, 7-5) who will be there. She will be accompanied by the returning Fiona Ferro. Falling to the 462nd in the world, the Frenchwoman got out of the clutches of the 173rd in the world Jessica Bouzas Maneiro (6-3, 1-6, 6-1). She will try to find a Grand Slam final table for the first time in a year.
The other players already stop there: the young Emma Lene (23 years old, 396th in the world) had to give in after three hours of play against the German Noma Noha Akugue (219th in the world) in three sets (7-5, 4- 6, 6-4). The march was also too high for Audrey Albie (243rd in the world) against the seeded n°3 Arantxa Rus (113th), swept away in two sets 6-2, 6-3, just like for the very young Daphnée Mpetshi Perricard, 14 years old. Giovanni’s sister (19 years old, 233rd in the world) gave in to the 216th in the world Kristina Dmitruk (6-1, 6-3). It’s also over for Carole Monnet, 197th in the world, beaten by the Swiss Simona Waltert, 127th in the world, in two sets (6-1, 6-3).
Margaux Rouvroy makes a splash against Sofia Kenin
At only 19 years old, Margaux Rouvroy will remember her first match at Roland-Garros. Beneficiary of an invitation for the qualifications, the 278th world had inherited a very difficult draw with Sofia Kenin, former world n ° 4 and finalist at Roland-Garros in 2020. Even falling to the 120th world place, the American left vast favorite against the French. Yet it was she who often thwarted on the important points of the game, to finally bow in two sets 6-4, 6-3.
The 24-year-old American, Grand Slam winner at the Australian Open in 2020, made many mistakes during the 1h39 of play, offering a lot of ammunition to the French (46 unforced errors to 13), who seized it, unbreaking her opponent six times. Even after the intervention of the physio at 4-3 for Kenin in the third set, Rouvroy never relaxed, and offered herself a second round on her first match point, exploding the court n°14.
It goes for Osorio, Cerundolo and Marozsan
Apart from the French, several names from the main circuit must also battle to reach the main draw. The sensation of the last Masters 1000 in Rome, Fabian Marozsan (115th in the world), who brought down world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz, passed in two sets (6-3, 6-4) against the Australian Li Tu (246th). It also goes for Francesco Cerundolo (104th), quarter-finalist in Rome, against Zachary Svajda (7-6, 6-3), as well as for the seeded n ° 1 in the ladies, Camila Osorio (84th in the world) , against Raluka Serban (6-4, 6-3).
On the other hand, it is already over for three names accustomed to the first rounds of the Grand Slams: the veteran Pablo Cuevas, eliminated by the just major Juncheng Shang (6-3, 6-4), the former world n ° 15 Nikoloz Basilashvili , fell to 217th place and beaten dryly by the Italian Giulio Zeppieri (6-4, 6-1), and the former 23rd in the world Damir Dzumhur, who cracked against the Croatian Borna Gojo, 103rd in the world (6-0, 4 -6, 6-4).
