Resuming the match on Tuesday after a thunderstorm ended the previous night’s play early in the third set, Nadal was forced to an entertaining tiebreak to wrap up a hard-fought French Open first round encounter.
Browsing: French Open
In his quest to become the first men’s player in the Open era to win each of the Grand Slams twice, Djokovic looked unhappy.
The Czech risked crashing out in the hands of little-known Paraguayan Veronica Royg before she rallied to a 3-6 6-1 7-5 win.
The former world number one is now ready for a fresh start ahead of next week’s French Open.
But then Serena Williams, the 23-times Grand Slam singles champion, has never been one to take too much notice of convention
Williams, a three-time champion at Roland Garros, discovered she was pregnant after winning the 2017 Australian Open and following her return from maternity leave in March, the American suffered early defeats in Indian Wells and Miami.
The American is expected to play at Roland Garros next week, where she has won the title three times.
A stroll down the alleys of the venue reveals how far work has progressed, with the expansion continuing apace days before the tournament starts.
Sunday’s 6-1 1-6 6-3 victory over German Alexander Zverev on the Rome dirt ensured the 31-year-old would leapfrog Roger Federer and become world number one for a sixth time ahead of the French Open.
Nadal, who won both Monte Carlo and Barcelona for an 11th time, will also reclaim the coveted world No 1 ranking from Roger Federer when the latest set of rankings are released on Monday
After she withdrew from events in Rome and Madrid, Williams’ coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, said Monday that Williams will be at Roland Garros in a bid for her record 24th major championship.
Zverev has long been marked out as a future star of the men’s game and his 6-4, 6-4 victory over Thiem suggests the German can be a major threat at the French Open later this month.
The withdrawal has cast doubts over the 36-year-old’s participation in the French Open beginning later this month.
The 36-year-old, who won the Madrid Open in 2012 and 2013, returned to the WTA tour in March after giving birth to her first child last September.
The world number one recovered from going a break down early in the first set to win 6-3 6-2 in 93 minutes and has now won 36 consecutive sets on clay, a run which stretches back to the first round of last year’s French Open
The eight-time Grand Slam winner and Olympic gold medallist only began coaching Djokovic last season ahead of the French Open, ending 11 years away from the sport.
The 36-year-old made the announcement after he was knocked out of the Miami Open by Thanasi Kokkinakis – a qualifier ranked 175 in the world.
“After four successful and challenging years of collaboration together, I would like to thank Sven for his incredible loyalty, work ethic and most importantly the friendship that we have formed that will go beyond this working partnership,” Sharapova said in a statement.
It was a blistering encounter between the 23-time Grand Slam champion and Bertens, who was a former French Open semi-finalist
But Mouratoglou also believes the American can get back to her best in time for the French Open.