By HOWARD FENDRICH AP Tennis Writer
PARIS — Iga Swiatek, who has struggled lately, and Carlos Alcaraz, who has not, got off to good starts in their French Open title defenses Monday, recording straight-set victories to reach the second round.
Swiatek was up first in Court Philippe-Chatrier and defeated 42nd-ranked Rebecca Sramkova, 6-3, 6-3. Swiatek compiled 25 winners and 17 unforced errors in the 1-hour, 24-minute contest.
Alcaraz needed only about a half-hour more than that for a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win over Giulio Zeppieri, an Italian qualifier who is ranked 310th. Alcaraz won all 14 of his service games, saving the three break points he faced, at Court Suzanne-Lenglen.
“It was really, really solid,” Alcaraz said. “Really proud about my start.”
Both Swiatek and Alcaraz sat in the Chatrier stands a day earlier to watch the farewell tribute to 14-time champion Rafael Nadal – and both active players wore the rust-colored T-shirts that read “Merci Rafa” distributed to spectators. Swiatek has often talked about her admiration for Nadal; Alcaraz is considered the 22-time Grand Slam champion’s heir apparent.
“For sure, there were tears,” said Swiatek, who faces 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu next. “It was amazing ceremony, and I’m happy that Roland Garros did this for Rafa. I’m happy that also the whole tennis world had an opportunity to kind of come together and just thank him. … He’s a GOAT, so I’m happy that I was there.”
Alcaraz is seeded No. 2 behind Jannik Sinner – who advanced Monday night with a 6-4, 6-3, 7-5 victory over 75th-ranked Arthur Rinderknech – and is coming off a clay-court title at the Italian Open a little more than a week ago. Alcaraz beat Sinner in the final there.
Monday’s result gave Alcaraz 28 wins in his past 30 matches on red clay, including going 7 for 7 a year ago at Roland-Garros. One of the losses came against Novak Djokovic in the gold-medal match at last year’s Paris Olympics, held at the same site as the French Open.
Swiatek has slipped to No. 5 in the rankings, her first time out of the top two spots in about three years. She hasn’t reached a final at any tournament since collecting her third consecutive championship – and fourth in five years – in Paris in 2024.
The 23-year-old from Poland extended her French Open unbeaten streak to 22 matches and is trying to become the first woman with four trophies in a row at the tournament in the professional era, which began in 1968. Monica Seles and Justine Henin also won three straight titles at Roland-Garros.
Two highly seeded Americans who made career-best runs at the U.S. Open last September bowed out quickly in Paris: No. 4 Taylor Fritz, the runner-up to Sinner in New York, and No. 9 Emma Navarro, a semifinalist at Flushing Meadows.
Fritz lost, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, to 66th-ranked Daniel Altmaier of Germany. The big-serving Fritz was broken five times and saw the end of his 15-match Grand Slam winning streak against opponents ranked outside the top 50.
Fritz lost to Sinner in the U.S. Open final in September, becoming the first American man to reach a major final since Andy Roddick in 2009. In Paris, Fritz was the highest-seeded American man at the French Open since Roddick was No. 3 in 2007.
While hard courts are Fritz’s preferred surface, he did have a run to the second week on the red clay of Roland-Garros a year ago, making it into the fourth round before losing to Casper Ruud.
Navarro was eliminated, 6-0, 6-1, in just 57 minutes by Jessica Bouzas Maneiro of Spain. Bouzas Maneiro’s biggest win of her career also came in the first round at a Grand Slam tournament: She beat reigning champion Marketa Vondrousova in the first round of Wimbledon last year.
Also on the way out Monday: Four-time major champion Naomi Osaka, who was in tears after her three-set loss to No. 10 Paula Badosa.
Osaka still wore the pink accessories in her hair inspired by “sakura” – cherry blossoms – and there were streaks on her cheeks where tears had rolled, when she sat down for her news conference.
Osaka’s red eyes welled as she answered a few questions before needing a break and briefly leaving the interview room following the 6-7 (1), 6-1, 6-4 defeat.
“As time goes on, I feel like I should be doing better. But also – I kind of talked about this before, maybe a couple years ago, or maybe recently, I’m not sure – I hate disappointing people,” said Osaka, who owns four Grand Slam trophies from the hard courts of the U.S. Open and Australian Open but never has been past the third round on the red clay of Roland-Garros.
Then, referring to her current coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, who used to work with Serena Williams, Osaka said: “He goes from working with, like, the greatest player ever to, like, ‘What the (expletive) is this?’ You know what I mean? Sorry for cursing. I hope I don’t get fined.”
Osaka, who was born in Japan and moved to the United States as a young child, was undone Monday by 54 unforced errors. That was twice as many as Badosa, whose best showing at a major was a semifinal run at the Australian Open in January and who reached the quarterfinals at Roland-Garros in 2021.
After taking the opening set, Osaka was treated by a trainer for hand blisters and also took time to clip her sakura-themed fingernails on the sideline.
She attributed the blisters, which also bothered her at the Italian Open this month, to “the friction of clay, because I don’t have blisters on any other surface.”
Osaka’s powerful serves and groundstrokes are dulled by the clay, and that showed against Badosa. Osaka was broken five times and finished with nearly as many double-faults, five, as aces, seven.
Once ranked No. 1 and currently No. 49, Osaka withdrew from the French Open in 2021 before her second-round match, explaining that she experiences “huge waves of anxiety” before speaking to the media and revealing she had dealt with depression. She then took multiple mental health breaks away from the tour.
She helped usher in a change in the way athletes, sports fans and society at large understood the importance of mental health.
A year ago at Roland-Garros, Osaka played one of her best matches since returning to action after becoming a mother, coming within a point of upsetting eventual champion Swiatek.
On Monday, after taking a break from questions, she returned to field one query from a Japanese journalist with an eye to the next major tournament, Wimbledon, which begins on grass on June 30.
“I don’t necessarily know my grass-season schedule right now,” Osaka said. “I wasn’t really expecting to lose in the first round.”
Two-time runner-up Ruud began his bid to reach another Roland-Garros final with a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 first-round victory over Spanish qualifier Albert Ramos-Vinolas.
Former runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas made light work of Tomas Martin Etcheverry, defeating the Argentine, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4.
Briton Jacob Fearnley eased past three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, beating the 40-year-old Swiss, 7-6 (6), 6-3, 6-2.
Richard Gasquet, in his final French Open appearance, dispatched fellow Frenchman Terence Atmane, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 6-0.
The Day 3 schedule will include past major title winners Djokovic, Coco Gauff, Daniil Medvedev and Sofia Kenin, and runners-up such as Alexander Zverev and Jessica Pegula.
DJOKOVIC CONSIDERS HIS OWN FUTURE
As Djokovic chatted at Court Philippe-Chatrier with his greatest rivals in tennis – Nadal, Roger Federer and Andy Murray, all of whom have retired – he couldn’t help but think about when his day to walk away might arrive.
“Well, I mean, honestly, I was thinking about my end of the road, as well,” Djokovic said with a smile Monday, a day before he’ll play his first-round match at the French Open against Mackie McDonald of the United States.
“But,” Djokovic added moments later with a grin, “I didn’t think about the exact date, if that’s what you’re looking for.”
Federer, Djokovic and Murray made a surprise appearance Sunday at the ceremony to honor Nadal for his 14 championships at Roland-Garros.
Djokovic, who turned 38 last week, won the 100th title of his career over the weekend at the Geneva Open on red clay – something the Serbian called “definitely much needed for my game and confidence level coming into Roland-Garros.”
He is the youngest member of a quartet that combined to collect 69 Grand Slam trophies, and came to be known by some as the Big Four of men’s tennis while they dominated the sport for years.
Federer, 43, played his final match in 2021; Murray, 38, stopped after last year’s Paris Olympics; Nadal finished up last season and was feted Sunday for his 14 championships at Roland-Garros.
“I was obviously talking to Federer and Murray about their goodbyes and reminiscing and reflecting on the rivalries. And of course, part of me is proud that I’m still there, that I’m still going,” said Djokovic, who owns a record 24 major titles, including three in Paris. “But at the same time, I was, and I still am, a bit sad that they’re all gone, because those guys were my greatest motivations of why I competed so intensely and for so long.”
Part of what went through Djokovic’s mind on Sunday was an appreciation for the way Nadal was celebrated.
And Djokovic also pondered what might happen when he decides to stop.
“Rafa deserved what he got yesterday in full intensity of its glory. … Each one of us dreams of being remembered in such a way and celebrated, of course,” Djokovic said. “I do wish one day that I can get that kind of goodbye from the world of tennis, for sure.”
He got emotional listening to Nadal’s speech and seeing the way the Spaniard’s relatives and team members reacted.
“It was a really heartwarming moment,” Djokovic said. “Even though we were the fiercest rivals, it’s that personal touch that is out there when you kind of spill your heart out on the court, as he did yesterday. It’s almost impossible it doesn’t touch you deeply.”
Djokovic was briefly coached by Murray this season until splitting recently, and Djokovic said it was a mutual decision.
He also said Murray teased that it was only after they went their separate ways that Djokovic earned his first title of the season by winning in Geneva on Saturday.
“I,” Djokovic said, “didn’t take that as a joke.”
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