It was a banner day for the host nation in men’s singles at the French Open on Wednesday. All five Frenchmen who took the court for second-round action at the French Open got the job done and punched their tickets to the last 32.
The results were as follows:
(12) Gilles Simon d. Martin Klizan 7-5, 6-2, 6-3
(14) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga d. Dudi Sela 6-4, 6-1, 6-1
(21) Gael Monfils d. Diego Schwartzman 4-6, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3
Benoit Paire d. (28) Fabio Fognini 6-1, 6-3, 7-5
(WC) Nicolas Mahut d. (24) Ernests Gulbis 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3
As the scores indicate, the drama was mostly reserved for Monfils. Although the No. 21 seed may not have been completely on top of his game, the competitiveness of the showdown had a lot to do with Schwartzman. The 5’7” Argentine put in a max effort and the result was an entertaining contest from start to finish.
Both men recorded a positive winners-to-errors ratio–an impressive feat on clay, especially in a match involving such skilled defenders. Schwartzman finished with 49 winners and 42 unforced errors, while Monfils blasted 68 winners at the expense of only 39 mistakes.
Monfils-Schwartzman highlights:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLN4grFPhXI]
“Today I won because I had the crowd behind me,” the 2008 Roland Garros semifinalist explained. “I think I was a bit off. As you can see…the crowd [started] to be with me, behind me, and actually [motivated] me…. They [gave] me, let’s say, some wings. I think I [raised] my level at that stage.”
The rest of the French contingent raised its level so high that little suspense ensued–even though Frenchmen were considerable underdogs on paper in two of their matches. Mahut struggled briefly with Gulbis, a 2014 semifinalist, but he completely turned things around after the Latvian failed to serve out the third set for a 2-1 advantage. Paire dominated an out-of-sorts Fognini right from the start.
Tsonga made similar work of Dudi Sela, albeit in much more expected fashion. The world No. 15 committed a mere 16 unforced errors in what was a short but sweet day at the Parisian office.
“I did the job,” Tsonga assured. “[The quick match] can only be helpful for the rest (of the tournament), because I’m not losing energy. Before I start playing even stronger players, it’s good to be fresh. I will certainly have to fight big fights, so it’s all the best to save energy. This is what I did, and it’s good.”
Tsonga and Sela play football:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z40EEkIWeoA]
Well, Rafa took care of one of them
Just watched Rafa’s first match on catch up. The young Halys acquitted himself well and was a good workout for Rafa. Definitely kept him on his toes.
One thing I have noticed this season: Rafa has gradually been reducing his OCD routines before serving. Would be interested to know what his average time was in that match.
Allons les Bleus!