Andy Murray beaten in straight sets by Stan Wawrinka in what is likely his last French Open singles match; Murray's fellow Brit Jack Draper knocked out after five-setter against Jesper de Jong; world No 3 Carlos Alcaraz shrugs off any injury fears in breezing past JJ Wolf
Sunday 26 May 2024 22:11, UK
Andy Murray was knocked out in the first round of what is likely to be his final French Open with the three-time Grand Slam champion overpowered by fellow veteran Stan Wawrinka at Roland Garros.
Murray, who says he does not expect to play much beyond this summer, lost 6-4 6-4 6-2 to 2015 French Open winner Wawrinka, the same player who eliminated him in the opening stage when the Briton last played in Paris back in 2020 and also in the 2017 semi-finals on his previous appearance before that.
Murray was broken in the first game of the match as Wawrinka unfurled some booming groundstrokes - a sign of things to come - with the former world No 1 then unable to take the two break points he carved out in the fourth game of the opener.
The 37-year-old could not manage a solitary break point in the second set, one he fell behind in when he was broken by Wawrinka in the third game, while he lost each of first two service games in the third as the Swiss ran out a handsome winner and Murray missed out on a potential second-round meeting with Cameron Norrie.
Murray's French Open is not over just yet, though, as he is scheduled to play in the doubles with Dan Evans.
Norrie, who plays Russia's Pavel Kotov on Monday, is now one of only two Brits left in the men's singles draw, alongside Evans, with Jack Draper following Murray in being eliminated on the opening day following a five-set defeat to Jesper de Jong.
Draper, aiming to reach the second round for the first time in Paris and set up a clash with world No 3 Carlos Alcaraz, recovered from two sets down but then lost the decider, beaten 7-5 6-4 6-7 (3-7) 3-6 6-3 as he fell in the opening round for the second year running.
The 23-year-old De Jong, ranked 177th in the world, will next face Alcaraz, who shrugged off any injury fears in breezing past JJ Wolf in straight sets on Sunday
The 21-year-old Spaniard's participation at Roland-Garros had been in doubt due to an issue with his forearm that forced him to miss clay-court tournaments in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Rome, with his Madrid title defence also derailed by the problem.
Alcaraz, a two-time major winner and semi-finalist in Paris last year, was in no obvious discomfort as he dropped only four games in winning 6-1 6-2 6-1 against 25-year-old American Wolf.
"I'm really happy to be back here in Paris to compete again," Alcaraz said after his victory. "It's been a very difficult month for me because I love competing.
"I've tried everything I could to be at 100 per cent, to show my best tennis, and I think I did that today.
"I would have loved to have played more matches but I don't need too many matches to get to 100 per cent. I did really good preparation this past two weeks and practices with top players. My forearm is getting better and better."
In a more challenging match, Russia's Andrey Rublev, the sixth seed, rebounded from a second-set downturn to defeat Taro Daniel of Japan 6-2 6-7 (3-7) 6-3 7-5 in three hours and 11 minutes.
Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka survived an early scare when she laboured past unseeded Italian Lucia Bronzetti 6-1 4-6 7-5 to claim her first French Open win in three years.
Returning this year from a 15-month maternity break, Osaka had fallen in the first round at the Australian Open in January but looked set to breeze into the second round in Paris as the former world No 1 bombarded Bronzetti from the baseline in a 28-minute opening set.
However, after being forced into a decider, Osaka nearly imploded when throwing away a 4-0 lead before going on to clinch victory, setting up a potential clash with world No 1 Iga Swiatek in the second round if the reigning champion beats French qualifier Leolia Jeanjean on Monday.
"I'm honestly really excited," Osaka told reporters. "I watched her [Swiatek] a lot when I was pregnant.
"And honestly, I think it's an honour to play her in the French Open, because she's won more than once here. It's a very big honour and challenge for me."
She added on her tournament-opening win: "There were moments I played pretty well, but I was nervous and got very tight in the third set.
"I'm pretty happy, but I would love to not have to go through that rollercoaster again."
Elsewhere, former French Open champion and ninth seed Jelena Ostapenko overcame a rusty start in both sets to beat Romania's Jaqueline Cristian 6-4 7-5 and reach the second round.
The Latvian, who claimed her lone Grand Slam title in Paris in 2017, won the final four games of the first set, but again fell behind to an early break in the second before rallying once more to wrap things up in straight sets.
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