Taylor Fritz beat Arthur Rinderknech in four sets before shushing the fervently partisan Suzanne-Lenglen spectators that had been hounding him all evening long, which didn’t go down well. Elsewhere, a compelling battle between two teenagers awaits between Mirra Andreeva and last year’s runner-up Coco Gauff, while Jannik Sinner lost despite having match point…
Andreeva’s ascent continues and more besides
- 16-year-old Russian talent Mirra Andreeva sets up matchup of teenagers with last year’s runner-up Coco Gauff in R3, to be played tomorrow, after 6-1, 6-2 win over French wildcard Diane Parry
- Meanwhile defending champion Iga Swiatek, Elena Rybakina [4] and seventh seed Ons Jabeur also all safely through without any trouble
- Tomas Martin Etcheverry beats Alex de Minaur 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 to log best career Major result – he’ll face Croatia’s Borna Coric in round three after #15 seed edges five-set battle vs. 23-year-old’s compatriot Pedro Cachin
- Jannik Sinner suffers painful deciding set defeat to Germany’s Daniel Altmaier – having had match points in set four – while Australian Open semifinalist Tommy Paul also surprisingly beaten by Chile’s Nicolas Jarry
Taylor Fritz [9] would’ve have expected the barrage that came his way, but handled it well all told. That’s the price you pay, for playing a Frenchman at Roland Garros.
The subsequent reaction to shush them was both fitting and poetic, for a fierce competitor whose drop shots and fantastic array of winners almost fell on deaf ears after recovering from a sluggish start where his serve hadn’t come out to play yet.
They wanted his opponent to win so dearly, and naturally so, given Arthur Rinderknech was their last home hopeful left. The 27-year-old had his moments, giving them something to cheer, but couldn’t sustain it.
He’s made strides on tour in recent seasons but it’s no coincidence he hasn’t made a splash at a Major and broken through among top players properly just yet.
Fritz – not immune to an early exit himself – improved as time wore on, his point construction became clearer, groundstrokes booming and using variety well.
After an error-prone start, Fritz chained together three sets of tennis with 10 winners in each and 15 unforced errors combined, an impressive feat considering the way Rinderknech kept him honest during their rally exchanges.
Eventually though, the American no. 1 pulled through in four – despite a scare late – to set up an interesting clash against Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo, who won 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 against German lucky loser Yannick Hanfmann.
The winner will likely play #6 seed Holger Rune in the fourth round, having benefited from an injury-enforced walkover against Gael Monfils.
The talented Dane faces Cerundolo’s compatriot Genaro Alberto Olivieri next, after the 24-year-old won a battle of qualifiers in four sets vs. Italy’s Andrea Vavassori.
Speaking of Italians…
I’ll have a deep dive into his performance and the potential ramifications post-tournament, but Jannik Sinner lost despite having two match points during a five-hour marathon against Germany’s Daniel Altmaier (6-7, 7-6, 1-6, 7-6, 7-5).
Five hours and 26 minutes meant this became the second-longest match of the season, after Andy Murray vs. Thanasi Kokkinakis at the Australian Open.
The 24-year-old – who did well progressing to round four at Roland Garros in 2020 but has been inconsistent since – broke his duck of five consecutive first-round Major exits against Marc-Andrea Huesler and has only gone backing it up with aplomb.
He’ll next play #28 seed Grigor Dimitrov, after the three-time Major semifinalist prevailed in straight-sets (7-6, 6-3, 6-4) against Emil Ruusuvuori.
As for the women’s draw… 2019 US Open champion Bianca Andreescu roared through into round three after a straight-sets win at the expense of American debutant Emma Navarro.
During a battle of two 22-year-olds, it was the former world no. 4 who started on fire with 11 first set winners (Navarro managed 2) and she lost just three points on serve.
However, the 2019 Roland Garros junior finalist responded well and raised her level during a gritty second set, saving break point during a never-ending first service game before breaking to lead 4-2 at one stage. Bianca made sure it wouldn’t last.
Ukraine’s Lesia Tsurenko is up next after the 34-year-old benefited from an injury-enforced retirement as she led 6-3, 1-0 against Lauren Davis elsewhere in second-round action atop Iga Swiatek’s section. Their two prior H2H meetings ended with injury retirement losses for the Canadian, something she’ll hope to avoid a repeat of.
Claire Liu had nothing to show for a solid start, and the match quickly evaded her grasp as world no.1 Iga Swiatek recorded the same scoreline as her first-round victory – 6-4, 6-0 – to earn a third-round clash against China’s Xinyu Wang.
Wang, four months younger than Swiatek, backed up her win over #31 seed Marie Bouzkova with a 7-6, 6-2 victory against Sweden’s Rebecca Peterson.
Their first and only H2H meeting came five years ago next month, in the Wimbledon girls’ semi-finals. Swiatek edged two tight sets and went onto win the tournament, so will history repeat itself this weekend?
23-year-old qualifier Kayla Day stunned 2022 Australian Open semifinalist Madison Keys with a three-set victory (6-2, 4-6, 6-4) during their all-American clash, and now faces Slovakia’s Anna Karolina Schmiedlova for a place in R4.
Neither player has reached that stage at a Major in their respective careers… and whoever emerges will play either 16-year-old Russian sensation Mirra Andreeva or Coco Gauff, who is three years older and has a point to prove this fortnight. Woof.
Elena Rybakina [4] hit 30 winners and dropped just seven points behind her serve over 90 minutes or so (6-3, 6-3) against Czech teenage talent Linda Noskova, extending the reigning Wimbledon champion‘s winning run to eight matches.
She’ll play Spain’s Sara Sorribes Tormo [PR], who after a six-month hiatus last October, has managed to reach R3 at a Major tournament for only the second time in her nine-year pro career to date following a 6-4, 6-1 win over Petra Martic.
In one of just two round three matches between seeds, Ekaterina Alexandrova [23] will face Beatriz Haddad Maia [14] after contrasting victories across Thursday.
Having dropped just one game against last year’s surprise Wimbledon semifinalist Tatjana Maria, Beatriz found herself engrossed in a gripping three-set battle and importantly came out on top against Russian teenager Diana Shnaider (6-2, 5-7, 6-4).
Alexandrova was in a three-set tussle of her own against Bulgaria’s Viktoriya Tomova during the opening round, but overpowered Germany’s Anna-Lena Friedsam 6-2, 6-0 in round two without playing at her best nor serving well.
What’s next?
Day 6: Matches to watch out for
ATP
Karen Khachanov [11] vs. Thanasi Kokkinakis
Alexander Zverev [22] vs. Frances Tiafoe [12]
Lorenzo Sonego vs. Andrey Rublev [7]
Lorenzo Musetti [17] vs. Cameron Norrie [14]
Novak Djokovic [3] vs. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina [31]
Carlos Alcaraz [1] vs. Denis Shapovalov [26]
WTA
Peyton Stearns vs. Daria Kasatkina [9]
Elise Mertens [28] vs. Jessica Pegula [3]
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova vs. Anastasia Potapova [24]
Clara Tauson [Q] vs. Elina Avanesyan [Q]
Sloane Stephens vs. Yulia Putintseva
Mo and Sports 