Bonjour! Yes the French Open began today. Perhaps you didn’t realize that because this is the only major with a Sunday start. But indeed it did start, slowly but surely.
Began with an ending: Lleyton Hewitt withdrew from the French Open, citing a problem with his left ankle.
In honor: Mathilde Johansson and Alize Cornet (pictured above) wore black ribbons on their shirts to honor the late coach/fiance of Virginie Razzano
Matching match: In matching Li Ning outfits, Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo defeated [19] Marin Cilic 7-6, 6-4, 6-4, for the first “big” upset of the tournament.
Unlucky number: The second “big” upset of the tournament came when Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez defeated [19] Shahar Peer 7-6, 6-1. Bad day to be the 19th seed.
First 5-setter of the tournament: France’s Maxime Teixeira defeated his compatriot, Vincent Millot, 6-2, 5-7, 6-7, 6-4, 6-1.
Routine wins: Samantha Stosur (6-2, 6-3 over Iveta Benesova), Jelena Jankovic (6-3, 6-1 over Alona Bondarenko), Svetlana Kuznetsova (6-2, 6-3 over Magdalena Rybarikova), David Ferrer (6-3, 6-3, 6-1 over Jarkko Nieminen) and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (6-3, 6-2, 6-2 over Jan Hajek).
Cute kits: Svetlana Kuznetsova’s Fila separates (black, collared tank with white shorts) and the ladies’ Lacoste separates, seen in black and white on Alize Cornet, Gisela Dulko, Yaroslava Shvedova and Mathilde Johansson and in red and white on Sam Stosur.
Americans prevailed: Varvara Lepchenko defeated [18] Flavia Penetta 6-3, 2-6, 6-3, and Bethanie Mattek-Sands came from a set down to defeat Arantxa Parra Santonja 2-6, 7-6, 6-3. Sadly for American fans, those two ladies will play each other in the next round.
Reason to get your eyes checked: The score box on Tennis Channel was smaller than an ant. Even in high definition, it was impossible to read the scores, let alone the names, on the screen.
Reason to pull up live video streams: ESPN started its coverage at 1pm EST and kicked off with a lovely, dramatic montage. It then showed us matches that already happened. Nothing live, despite what my cable information guide said.
Also, according to an interview on the Roland Garros web site, Tommy Haas would choose Maria Sharapova to play doubles with and Andre Agassi to share a bottle of wine with. Well, Andre does get better with age. As for Jurgen Melzer, he’d choose Kim Clijsters for mixed doubles and would want John Isner to protect him in a forest. Okay..
(Photo: Roland Garros)
