World number two Daniil Medvedev showed no signs of discomfort from his recent hernia operation, kicking off his French Open campaign with a comfortable 6-2 6-2 6-2 win over Argentine Facundo Bagnis.
Daniil Medvedev Photo: PHOTOSPORT
The 2021 U.S. Open champion, who briefly held the world number one ranking earlier in the season, played his first clay event of 2022 last week in Geneva after a two-month break but lost in the opening round to Frenchman Richard Gasquet.
Clay courts have not been Medvedev's strong suit and he was 0-4 at Roland Garros before last year's tournament but turned around his dismal record by reaching the quarter-final of the 2021 edition of the Grand Slam.
Danish teenager Holger Rune swept aside 14th seed Denis Shapovalov in straight sets to earn his first win in a Grand Slam tournament and confirm his status as one of the sport's brightest prospects.
The 19-year-old, who won his maiden tour title in Munich this month, powered past the Canadian world number 15 with ease, winning 6-3 6-1 7-6(4) and showing no nerves.
A former French Open junior champion at 16, Rune looked extremely comfortable on the red clay on the outside Court 12, cruising through the first two sets in less than an hour with Shapovalov having no answer to his power and serial drop shots.
The teenager shot up from the 400s in the rankings in 2021 to the top 100 early this year.
He has already improved his ranking to world number 40, a major accomplishment considering he played for the first time in the main draw of an ATP tournament just over a year ago.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga gave Norway's eighth-seeded Casper Ruud a run for his money in a tight French Open first round battle but predictably headed into a tear-jerking retirement with a 6-7(6) 7-6(4) 6-2 7-6(0) defeat.
The Frenchman, whose career had been hampered by multiple injuries in recent years, fought for almost four hours before bowing out in tears.
The court Philippe Chatrier crowd gave him a standing ovation as the 37-year-old knelt on the red dirt after being unable to put up more of a fight because of shoulder pain.
It was the latest in a series of physical problems that saw the former world number five drop to 297 in the ATP rankings.
Tsonga, one of only three men to beat Rafael Nadal, Novak Dokovic and Roger Federer when each was world number one and an Australian Open runner-up in 2008, had not won a match on clay in almost three years and there was no miracle today.
Winners in the women's draw included number three Paula Badosa, number eight Karolina Pliskova and number nine Danielle Collins.
-Reuters