Djokovic, Nadal shine; Muguruza clears 1st hurdle
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BACK on the court where he completed his career grand slam, Novak Djokovic showed no sign of the crisis of confidence that has affected his game since winning the French Open last year.
With new coach Andre Agassi watching from the stands, the second-seeded Serb dispatched claycourt specialist Marcel Granollers 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the second round at Roland Garros in Paris yesterday.
Trailing 0-40 on his serve in the final game, Djokovic won the next five points and sealed the match with a service winner.
Visibly happy with his performance, he then mingled with ball boys at the center of Philippe Chatrier court and thanked the crowd. “Last year, I won here for the first time, it was really a special moment for me on the court, an important moment of my career, I’ll never forget this feeling,” Djokovic said, speaking in French.
Since beating Andy Murray in last year’s final, Djokovic has failed to add any more major titles to his collection. He lost in the third round at Wimbledon, his earliest defeat in a grand slam in seven years, was beaten in the first round at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, reached the final of the US Open, and lost early again at the Australian Open.
Serbia’s Djokovic, who lost his No. 1 ranking to Murray last year, has hired American Agassi as part of his bid to win Roland Garros and become the first man in the Open era to win each of the four majors twice.
“It’s incredible to have Agassi in my team, every day is special with him, everyday I’m learning something new,” said Djokovic, who split with longtime coach Marian Vajda at the start of the month.
“I’ve changed everyone, but I will not change my wife,” added Djokovic in a smile. “Never.”
There was no hiccup on court Suzanne Lenglen for Rafael Nadal, who started his bid for a 10th title at Roland Garros with a 6-1, 6-4, 6-1 defeat of Benoit Paire. The 14-time grand slam champion produced a clinical display, limiting his mistakes to 18 unforced errors and advancing in less than two hours.
Canadian fifth seed Milos Raonic raced into round two with a routine 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Steve Darcis of Belgium.
Former US Open champion Marin Cilic and Belgian 10th seed David Goffin also progressed, but American 14th seed Jack Sock was blown away in three sets by towering Czech left-hander Jiri Vesely.
In the women’s draw, defending champion Garbine Muguruza began the day’s play with a confidence-boosting 6-2, 6-4 win over Francesca Schiavone to reach the second round.
Schiavone, the 2010 champion, showed her usual fighting spirit and saved three match points before sending a forehand volley wide.
The fourth-seeded Muguruza won 15 points in a row from being up 3-2 in the first set and broke her Italian opponent five times.
“Schiavone can be a very tricky player,” Muguruza said. “I think she has moments where she’s unbelievable. I’m happy that I managed to play, to be able to be kind of composed out there, because I wasn’t sure how I was going to react again in the center court, playing against an ex-champ.”
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