Rafael Nadal

At least two American women are guaranteed to advance to the fourth round of the 2021 French Open on Saturday. 

Sofia Kenin and Jessica Pegula play each other and then Coco Gauff and Jennifer Brady face off in two all-American seeded third-round matchups at Roland Garros. 

Each of the four players have experienced success at majors in the last two years. Kenin was the only member of the group to win a Grand Slam at the 2020 Australian Open. 

Brady was a semifinalist at the 2020 U.S. Open, Pegula was a surprise quarterfinalist in Australia earlier this year, and Gauff broke out on the major stage with a fourth-round berth at the 2020 Australian Open. 

Sloane Stephens is the fifth American woman in action on Saturday. She is looking to win her second match in a row over a seeded player. Stephens upset Karolina Pliskova in the second round. 

Over in the men's draw, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will be in action against unseeded players. Each of the three men are expected to advance in commanding fashion.

The full schedule for Saturday's matches at Roland Garros can be found here on the tournament's official website. 

        

Predictions

Kenin, Brady Win All-American Clashes

Kenin and Brady are the higher seeds in their respective matches, and they should end up in the fourth round. However, their path could come with a bit of trouble since Gauff and Pegula are in solid form. 

Pegula owns a 2-1 head-to-head advantage over Kenin, but the 2020 Australian Open winner won their last meeting at the beginning of the season. 

Kenin looked better in the second round than in her opener, as she breezed past fellow American Hailey Baptiste in straight sets. The No. 4 seed carries plenty of experience on the clay. She advanced to the final last year before falling to Iga Swiatek.

Saturday marks Pegula's first third-round match on the Paris clay. It will be just her third third-round match at a major. She has played well in Paris, but Kenin's experience could be the difference.

Brady and Gauff are two of the rising stars of the women's game, but the former has gotten further at majors in the last two years. 

The No. 13 seed reached the semifinals at two of the last three majors and has played better on clay, where she was eliminated in the first round in 2020. 

Gauff is headed in the same direction as Brady, but the No. 24 seed might not be there quite yet. Brady's key should be to put pressure on Gauff's serve and grab an early break or two. Gauff was pushed to a tiebreak in each of her first two matches. 

If Brady wins, she could be viewed as the best American hope outside of Serena Williams to win the French Open title. 

With No. 1 seed Ashleigh Barty out of the draw, Brady has a clear path to the quarterfinals. Williams is the highest seed left in the bottom part of the draw.

           

Men's Big 3 Continues to Thrive 

This is not much of a bold prediction, but it is the safest one for the Saturday matches: Djokovic, Federer and Nadal should all push on to the fourth round against unseeded foes. 

Federer is the only member of the Big Three to lose a set so far in Paris. He rebounded from that set with two victorious sets against Marin Cilic. 

Djokovic has not allowed an opponent to win more than four games off him in a single set, while Nadal has not dropped a set in Paris since the 2019 final. 

Out of their three opponents, only Dominik Koepfer, who takes on Federer, has advanced past the third round at any major. His furthest advancement was the fourth round at the 2019 U.S. Open. 

Prior to this year, Koepfer, Ricardas Berankis and Cameron Norrie all failed to get out of the second round at Roland Garros. 

Unless a significant upset occurs, none of them will add a fourth-round appearance to their resumes, and we will get one step closer to a Djokovic-Federer quarterfinal, with the winner likely facing Nadal in the semifinal.

        

Statistics obtained from ATPTour.com and WTATennis.com.

The biggest names in tennis were in action Thursday at Roland Garros for Round 2 of the 2021 French Open.

Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal all earned spots in the next round, although there was a major shake-up in the women's draw as No. 1 seed Ashleigh Barty was forced to retire. She was one of several quality players in each bracket that saw their run in Paris come to an end.

Here is the latest from Day 5 of the Grand Slam event.

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Notable Results

Men's Draw

No. 1 Novak Djokovic def. Pablo Cuevas; 6-3, 6-2, 6-4

No. 3 Rafael Nadal def. Richard Gasquet; 6-0, 7-5, 6-2

No. 8 Roger Federer def. Marin Cilic; 6-2, 2-6, 7-6 (4), 6-2

No. 9 Matteo Berrettini def. Federico Coria; 6-3, 6-3, 6-2

No. 10 Diego Schwartzman def. Aljaz Bedene; 6-4, 6-2, 6-4

Mikael Ymer def. No. 14 Gael Monfils; 6-0, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3

No. 18 Jannik Sinner def. Gianluca Mager; 6-1, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3

Philipp Kohlschreiber def. No. 24 Aslan Karatsev; 6-3, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-1

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Women's Draw

Magda Linette def. No. 1 Ashleigh Barty; 6-1, 2-2 ret.

No. 4 Sofia Kenin def. Hailey Baptiste; 7-5, 6-3

No. 5 Elina Svitolina def. Ann Li; 6-0, 6-4

No. 8 Iga Swiatek def. Rebecca Peterson; 6-1, 6-1

Sloane Stephens def. No. 9 Karolina Pliskova; 7-5, 6-1

No. 13 Jennifer Brady def. Fiona Ferro; 6-4, 2-6, 7-5

No. 14 Elise Mertens def. Zarina Diyas; 4-6, 6-2, 6-4

No. 18 Karolina Muchova def. Varvara Lepchenko; 6-3, 6-4

No. 24 Coco Gauff def. Qiang Wang; 6-3, 7-6 (1)

Full results available at RolandGarros.com.

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Recap

The women's draw is now wide-open after Barty retired from her second-round match because of a hip injury.

"I was battling the pain, and it just became too severe, and like I said, was becoming unsafe," Barty told reporters after the match.

Magda Linette had dominated the first set before the match was called. The Poland native will get a chance to keep her momentum going with a battle against No. 25 Obs Jabeur.

Sloane Stephens created even more drama in the women's draw with a straight-set victory over No. 9 Karolina Pliskova. The American was especially impressive in the second set with three breaks while going 14-of-19 on service points for the 6-1 win.

QUICK 👏 WORK 👏@SloaneStephens captures her first Top 10 win in over two years, defeating Karolina Pliskova 7-5, 6-1.
How it happened: https://t.co/hmDaWKDoLf#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/zdNdj1hdY9

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 3, 2021

With Naomi Osaka already out of the tournament after withdrawing, there are few top seeds remaining in the field.

Defending champion Iga Swiatek is among those who can be a threat to win it all after a strong start to the tournament, including a 6-1, 6-1 victory Thursday.

No. Chance. 🙅‍♀️#RolandGarros | @iga_swiatek pic.twitter.com/9zAQYGEi6i

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 3, 2021

Iga Swiatek through two rounds at #RG21:

1R: d. Juvan 60 75
2R: d. Peterson 61 61

- Has held 14 of 16 service games
- Has broken serve in 11 of 16 return games
- Return points won vs. 2nd serve - 1R: 70%, 2R: 86%.

Faces 30th seed Kontaveit next. pic.twitter.com/hO0my7spUN

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) June 3, 2021

The men's draw had some surprises, including Mikael Ymer defeating No. 14 Gael Monfils, but the focus was on the Big Three cruising once again.

Djokovic showed how to come through in big moments on his way to a three-set win over Pablo Cuevas.

Ice cold ❄️@DjokerNole fends off 3 break points to take the opener 6-3 over Cuevas. #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/xC3N3I4HFr

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 3, 2021

The No. 1 seed saved eight of the nine break points faced over the three sets, going 5-of-8 on break opportunities the other way. It led to what became an easy win for the superstar.

Federer overcame a difficult challenge from fellow veteran Marin Cilic.

The 38-year-old showcased his skill with some classic shots during the match:

A perfect flick of the wrist 🙌#RolandGarros | @rogerfederer pic.twitter.com/VLdML37IkK

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 3, 2021

It’s the causal walk back for us 😏#RolandGarros | @rogerfederer pic.twitter.com/v7h4JQtoGG

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 3, 2021

He also had 16 aces with only one double-fault. Though Cilic easily won the second set, Federer was too good with his serve to lose in Round 2.

Nadal also showed what he can do with an easy win over Richard Gasquet.

The first-set bagel was as one-sided as you might ever see at this level:

6-0 😳 @RafaelNadal drops just nine points against Gasquet!

📹: @rolandgarros pic.twitter.com/unWdvJ5AH7

— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 3, 2021

Gasquet fared better in the second set in front of the home crowd, but he could only win seven games overall in the match as Nadal thrived on his 35th birthday.

With Djokovic, Federer and Nadal all in one side of the draw, it could lead to some exciting battles down the line.

The reigning champions at Roland Garros have not dropped a set through two rounds.

Rafael Nadal and Iga Swiatek cruised into the third round with victories on Thursday.

The women's titleholder has been the more dominant of the 2020 singles champions, after outscoring her two opponents 25-7 through four sets. 

Nadal faced some fight from Richard Gasquet in Thursday's night match on Court Philippe-Chatrier, but the Frenchman did not do enough to seriously threaten the Spaniard's title hopes. 

Last year's runners-up in Paris also breezed into the third round, with Novak Djokovic and Sofia Kenin picking up straight-set victories. 

Not every seeded player had such an easy day on the clay. Gael Monfils, Alex De Minaur, Aslan Karatsev, Nikoloz Basilashvili and Taylor Fritz were upset in the men's draw, while America's Sloane Stephens knocked out ninth-seeded woman Karolina Pliskova. 

           

Thursday French Open Results

Men's Singles

No. 1 Novak Djokovic def. Pablo Cuevas, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4

No. 3 Rafael Nadal def. Richard Gasquet, 6-2, 7-5, 6-2

No. 8 Roger Federer def. Marin Cilic, 6-2, 2-6, 7-6, (7-4), 6-2

No. 9 Matteo Berretini def. Federico Coria, 6-3, 6-3, 6-2

No. 10 Diego Schwartzman def. Aljaz Bedene, 6-4, 6-2, 6-4

Mikael Ymer def. No. 14 Gael Monfils, 6-0, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3

No. 18 Jannik Sinner def. Gianluca Mager, 6-1, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3

Marco Cecchinato def. No. 21 Alex De Minaur, 6-4, 6-1, 3-6, 6-1

Philipp Kohlschriber def. No. 24 Aslan Karatsev, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4), 4-6, 6-1

Carlos Alcaraz def. No. 28 Nikoloz Basiliashvili, 6-4, 6-2, 6-4

Dominik Koepfer def. No. 30 Taylor Fritz, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4

            

We are one round closer to seeing two of the "Big Three" in men's singles tennis square off. 

Nadal, Djokovic and Roger Federer all advanced to the third round on Thursday, and the Swiss star was the only member of the group to drop a set. 

Federer also faced the toughest opponent in Marin Cilic, who is one of the few previous major champions on the men's circuit outside of the Big Three.

Cilic controlled the second set by winning two of his five break points and fending off all four of the break-point opportunities created by the No. 8 seed. 

Federer battled through a third-set tiebreak to regain the edge in the match and then finished off the Croatian with relative ease in the fourth set. 

The 39-year-old won two of his three fourth-set breaks, did not allow Cilic a chance to break serve and won nine of the 21 receiving points on his opponent's serve. 

Nadal appeared to be on a fast path to the third round after he put up a 6-0 first-set win over Gasquet. The Frenchman put up more of a fight in the second and third sets, but he still could not come close to matching the Spaniard's quality. Nadal is now 17-0 all-time versus Gasquet. 

Nadal sits on the lighter side in the top half of the men's bracket. No. 10 Diego Schwartzman and No. 18 Jannik Sinner are the only two seeds left in that section. 

Monfils, Karatsev and Basilashvili were all ousted from the those two portions, with the most stunning loss coming for Basilashvili.

Eighteen-year-old Carlos Alcaraz swept the No. 28 seed and could be a surprise quarterfinalist if he gets past Schwartzman in a potential fourth-round match. 

Federer and Djokovic will have to go through a crop of young Italian players to face off in the final eight. Marco Cecchinato, Lorenzo Musetti and No. 9 seed Matteo Berrettini are still alive in the top two portions of the draw. 

      

Women's Singles

Magda Linette def. No. 1 Ashleigh Barty, 6-1, 2-2 (retired) 

No. 4 Sofia Kenin def. Hailey Baptiste, 7-5, 6-3

No. 5 Elina Svitolina def. Ann Li, 6-0, 6-4

No. 8 Iga Swiatek def. Rebecca Peterson, 6-1, 6-1

Sloane Stephens def. No. 9 Karolina Pliskova, 7-5, 6-1

No. 13 Jennifer Brady def. Fiona Ferro, 6-4, 2-6, 7-5

No. 14 Elise Mertens def. Zarina Diyas, 4-6, 6-2, 6-4

No. 17 Maria Sakkari def. Jasmine Paolini, 6-2, 6-3

No. 18 Karolina Muchova def. Varvara Lepchenko, 6-3, 6-4

No. 24 Coco Gauff def. Wang Qiang, 6-3, 7-6 (7-1)

No. 25 Ons Jabeur def. Astra Sharma, 6-2, 6-4

No. 28 Jessica Pegula def. Tereza Martincova, 6-3, 6-3

No. 30 Anett Kontaveit def. Kristian Mladenovic, 6-2, 6-0

Barbora Krejicova def. No. 32 Ekaterina Alexandrova, 6-2, 6-3

          

Swiatek should be viewed as the favorite to win the women's title after turning in another dominant performance and top seed Ashleigh Barty being forced to retire from the tournament.

Barty made it through the first set and four games in the second against Magda Linette before a hip injury saw her call an end to her chance to win two French Open titles in three years. 

The Australian expressed her disappointment to reporters after the match:

"It's heartbreaking. We have had such a brilliant clay court season, and to kind of get a little bit unlucky with timing more than anything, to have something kind of acute happen over the weekend and just kind of run out of time against the clock is disappointing. It won't take away the brilliant three months that we have had, as much as it hurts right now."

Swiatek still has to navigate a portion of the bracket that is littered with seeded players, but she has been the most dominant of the top-tier stars through the opening rounds. 

WTA Insider highlighted just how in control the 20-year-old has been at Roland Garros in her first major title defense: 

Iga Swiatek through two rounds at #RG21:

1R: d. Juvan 60 75
2R: d. Peterson 61 61

- Has held 14 of 16 service games
- Has broken serve in 11 of 16 return games
- Return points won vs. 2nd serve - 1R: 70%, 2R: 86%.

Faces 30th seed Kontaveit next. pic.twitter.com/hO0my7spUN

— WTA Insider (@WTA_insider) June 3, 2021

Swiatek will face No. 30 seed Anett Kontaveit in the third round, and an unseeded opponent will await in the fourth round. 

At least two American women will qualify for the final 16 out of the top half. Coco Gauff will play Jennifer Brady in the third round, while Sofia Kenin meets Jessica Pegula. 

The victories by those players were overshadowed by Stephens' straight-sets upset of Pliskova, which moved her head-to-head record in the series to 4-1. 

Stephens finished off the victory in emphatic fashion by winning three of seven break points created and taking 16 of 28 receiving points on Pliskova's serve. 

Next up for the 28-year-old is a meeting with No. 18 Karolina Muchova. If she gets past that match, she could take on No. 5 seed Elina Svitolina in a bid to reach the final eight. 

           

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from RolandGarros.com.

Rafael Nadal's French Open win streak has reached 32 matches.

The clay-court GOAT faced little resistance in his second-round match against Richard Gasquet, breezing to a 6-0, 7-5, 6-2 victory at Roland Garros. 

Nadal continued to struggle with placement of his serve—he's double-faulted eight times through two matches—but has managed to win back-to-back matches in straight sets thanks to strong efforts returning.

Gasquet faced 16 break points as Nadal's swift movement and crisp returns flummoxed him, with the Spaniard converting seven of those opportunities. The veteran Frenchman won just 31 percent of his second-serve chances while double-faulting four times himself. 

Power or touch?

Pick your poison 🤷‍♂️#RolandGarros | @RafaelNadal pic.twitter.com/oWpgiE17BK

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 3, 2021

Nadal has won 31 consecutive sets against Gasquet, with the streak dating back to 2008. Overall, he's won all 17 of their head-to-head matchups. The last time Gasquet defeated Nadal was when they were both 12 years old on the junior circuit. 

Nadal is seeking his 14th French Open championship and 21st Grand Slam, the latter of which would break his tie with Roger Federer for the most in men's tennis history. 

After a pair of surprising losses to Andrey Rublev and Alexander Zverev early in the clay-court season, Nadal found his form at last month's Italian Open. He avenged his loss to Zverev in the quarterfinals before overcoming Novak Djokovic in a three-set thriller in the finals.

Djokovic has been determined to earn his second French Open championship, having come up frustratingly short each year since his 2016 triumph. Nadal dominated Djokovic in a three-set romp that ranked as perhaps the most thoroughly dominated we've seen Nole since his ascent to the top of the ATP rankings.

Nadal and Djokovic would meet in the semifinals if both continue to through the tournament. Rafa's next opponent is 25-year-old Cameron Norrie, who is making his first appearance in Round 3 at Roland Garros.

Norrie has lost to Nadal twice by straight sets in the 2021 calendar year, including in the third round of the Australian Open. Nadal also defeated Norrie 6-1, 6-4 in the quarterfinals of April's Barcelona Open.

If Norrie were to pull off the upset, it would be one of the biggest upsets in the history of tennis. Nadal has an astounding 102-2 record at Roland Garros.

Norrie, meanwhile, has three losses in six matches at the clay-court major. 

Thursday's schedule at Roland Garros is loaded with previous French Open champions and the favorites to win the 2021 edition of the tournament. 

Ashleigh Barty, Karolina Pliskova, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will play on Court Philippe Chatrier, while Novak Djokovic, Elina Svitolina and Iga Swiatek are scheduled for the two other showcase courts. 

The stars playing on Chatrier face tougher test than they may have in previous second-round major matches. 

Barty appears to have the easiest match of the four seeded players since Magda Linette has advanced out of the second round at Roland Garros once in her career. 

American Sloane Stephens should provide a challenge to Pliskova, Federer takes on fellow major winner Marin Cilic, and Nadal gets Frenchman Richard Gasquet. 

The full order of play for Thursday's matches at Roland Garros can be found on the tournament's official website. 

     

Predictions

Sloane Stephens Provides Challenge for Karolina Pliskova

Stephens could be in the best position to upset a top-10 seed on Thursday. 

The 28-year-old American was a French Open finalist in 2018, made the quarterfinals in 2019 and owns a 3-1 head-to-head record over Pliskova. 

Stephens was far from perfect in the buildup to Roland Garros, but she did pick up a few victories over seeded players on the clay-court circuit. 

Stephens defeated Madison Keys in Charleston and beat Daria Kasatkina in three sets in Parma, Italy. She also pushed Ons Jabeur to a third set in Madrid and pushed Keys to three sets in Rome. 

The 58th-ranked woman in the world continued her run of three-set matches in the first round, where she beat Carla Suarez Navarro after stumbling in the first set. 

Pliskova was a semifinalist at Roland Garros in 2017, but she has not advanced past the third round in any of her other eight main-draw appearances. 

The No. 9 seed entered Roland Garros off a final appearance in Rome, but her path to get there was bumpy. She needed three sets to get past both Jelena Ostapenko and Petra Martic. 

In her three clay-court appearances prior to Paris, Pliskova went 7-3, with five of those victories coming in three sets. 

Even if Stephens does not come up with the upset, she should at least push Pliskova to a third set in a match that could be the best of the four scheduled for Chatrier. 

           

Roger Federer Loses at Least 1 Set to Marin Cilic

Federer and Cilic have been through some battles at major championships throughout their careers. 

The last match between the two major winners was the five-set Australian Open final in 2018. That was the third time Cilic took at least one set off Federer at a major. 

Federer needed five sets to get past Cilic in the 2016 Wimbledon quarterfinals and won in four sets at the 2011 U.S. Open. 

Federer could be the member of the men's Big Three most susceptible to an early upset in Paris because he just returned from an extended injury layoff. Djokovic and Nadal will be heavy favorites in each one of their matches during the first week of play. 

Cilic and Federer advanced out of the first round with relative ease, so they should be more than rested for the showdown that is expected on Chatrier. 

Cilic's 4-4 clay-court record in the buildup to Roland Garros may not suggest he will be up for the fight, but he had no problem winning in the first round and has picked off at least one set off Federer in three of their four Grand Slam meetings. 

The 2014 U.S. Open champion may not pull off the upset, but he will give Federer one of his toughest tests of the first week.

          

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

Statistics obtained from ATPTour.com and WTATennis.com.

First-round play at the 2021 French Open wrapped up on Tuesday, with top men's and women's contenders like Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Ashleigh Barty all advancing. 

Nadal is looking to win at Roland Garros for the fifth straight year. It would mark the second time in his career he's accomplished that feat. The 34-year-old previously did it from 2010-14. He got off to a strong start with a straight-set victory over Alexei Popyrin. 

Djokovic had no problem disposing of Tennys Sandgren 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 in a match that was completed in under two hours. 

Barty, the top seed on the women's bracket, was taken to three sets before putting away unranked American Bernarda Pera.

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2021 French Open Results

Men's Draw

No. 1 Novak Djokovic def. Tennys Sandgren 6-2, 6-4, 6-2

No. 3 Rafael Nadal def. Alexei Popyrin 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (3)

Jan-Lennard Struff def. No. 7 Andrey Rublev 6-3, 7-6 (6), 4-6, 3-6, 6-4

No. 9 Matteo Berrettini def. Taro Daniel 6-0, 6-4, 4-6, 6-4

No. 10 Diego Schwartzman def. Yen-Hsun Lu 6-2, 6-2, 6-3

No. 14 Gael Monfils def. Albert Ramos-Vinolas 1-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4, 6-4

Andreas Seppi def. No. 20 Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-3, 7-6 (8), 4-6, 6-4

No. 21 Alex De Minaur def. Stefano Travaglia 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (4)

No. 24 Aslan Karatsev def. Jenson Brooksby 6-3, 6-4, 6-4

Ricardas Berankis def. No. 29 Ugo Humbert 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4

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Women's Draw

No. 1 Ashleigh Barty def. Bernarda Pera 6-4, 3-6, 6-2

No. 5 Elina Svitolina def. Oceane Babel 6-2, 7-5

No. 9 Karolina Pliskova def. Donna Vekic 7-5, 6-4

No. 13 Jennifer Brady def. Anastasija Sevastova 6-3, 6-3

No. 17 Maria Sakkari def. Katarina Zavatska 6-4, 6-1

No. 18 Karolina Muchova def. Andrea Petkovic 1-6, 6-3, 6-4

No. 24 Coco Gauff def. Aleksandra Krunic 7-6 (11), 6-4

No. 25 Ons Jabeur def. Yulia Putintseva 7-5, 6-2

No. 30 Anett Kontaveit def. Viktorija Golubic 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5), 6-0

No. 32 Ekaterina Alexandrova def. Venus Williams 6-3, 6-1

Full results available at RolandGarros.com.  

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Recap

Djokovic's dominance was on full display against Sandgren. The men's top seed went 5-of-11 on break points and won 44 of 94 receiving points. He also saved all six break-point chances that Sandgren had. 

Closing in on a W...#RolandGarros | @DjokerNole pic.twitter.com/JbuzyLMLiV

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 1, 2021

Tuesday marks Djokovic's eight consecutive win in a Grand Slam tournament dating back to the Australian Open. He's advanced to the quarterfinals at Roland Garros in each of the past 11 years. 

There's still a long ways for Djokovic to go before he gets to that point this year, but the early returns look very good.

The biggest upset of the day saw men's No. 7 seed Andrey Rublev eliminated in his first-round match by Jan-Lennard Struff. 

Rublev dug himself into a huge hole early by dropping the first two sets, including a tiebreak in the second, before finally coming to life. The Russian was able to force a decisive fifth set before running out of gas. 

Jan-Lennard Struff upsets Andrey Rublev in five sets, taking one of the players who had beaten Nadal on clay this year out of Nadal’s quarter. #RG21

— Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) June 1, 2021

Rublev had similar struggles in the first round at the French Open last year. He dropped the first two sets against Sam Querrey, but was able to rebound by winning three straight sets. The 23-year-old rode that momentum to the quarterfinal, tying his best finish at a Grand Slam tournament. 

Struff dominated Rublev on serve with a 25-13 advantage in aces. The Belgian also won 30 net points, compared to just 10 for Rublev. 

Nadal wasn't bitten by the upset like Rublev, but he did get perhaps more than he bargained for in the opening round. The 13-time French Open champion had to rally from 2-5 in the third set to send Popyrin home. 

Looking ahead to the second round, Nadal will take on Richard Gasquet. The Spaniard is 16-0 in his career against Gasquet, including 2-0 at Roland Garros. 

The longest player introduction ever 😂

🎥: @rolandgarros | @RafaelNadal pic.twitter.com/g3s5VsAC6A

— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 1, 2021

"With this serve, with these kinds of shots from the baseline, [Popyrin has] everything to become a top player," Nadal told reporters after the match. "If he wants to do it, of course he is going to have his chances, because he has a lot of very difficult things in his game. He has everything to become a great...no, a fantastic player."

After an eventful Monday on the women's side of the draw, including four top-20 seeds losing, things did normalize today with no major upsets. 

Barty didn't play her best match with just 18 winners and five aces, but she was able to take advantage of 49 unforced errors from Pera. The Australian said after her win that she's dealing with an injured left hip. 

"Not going to hide behind the fact I'm not quite 100 percent, but I can guarantee that I will go out there with the right attitude every day and be accepting of that and give it a crack no matter what. It's going to be tough now without a doubt," Barty said.

In perhaps the best set of the day, Coco Gauff got past Aleksandra Krunic in a tiebreak that required 24 points to decide the first set. The 17-year-old American settled in at that point to win the second set and the match 6-4. 

How to Fight 101 🤓

Professor @CocoGauff at your service.

The 17-year-old American books a trip to R2 with a 7-6(11), 6-4 win over Krunic. #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/M1o5DBhfaQ

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 1, 2021

This is Gauff's third appearance at the French Open. She hasn't advanced past the second round in the past two years, but the No. 24 seed will have an opportunity to do so against Qiang Wang on Thursday. 

There was one notable loss from the field, though it didn't happen in a match. Petra Kvitova, who defeated Greet Minnen on Sunday, announced she was withdrawing from the French Open because of an ankle injury suffered during her media availability. 

Elina Svitolina needed just 76 minutes to put away Oceane Babel 6-2, 7-5. The Ukraine native didn't have an ace but took advantage of 36-17 edge in receiving points won. 

The king of the French Open came close to losing a set on Tuesday. 

Rafael Nadal was pushed in the third set against Alexei Popyrin, who faltered on the set points he gained against the 13-time champion at Roland Garros. 

With his straight-set win over Popyrin, Nadal has now won 25 consecutive sets in Paris. The last set he dropped was to Dominic Thiem in the 2019 men's singles final. 

Nadal and Novak Djokovic both won in three sets on Tuesday to ensure 10 of the top 12 seeds in the men's draw advanced to the second round.

Andrey Rubley, the No. 7 seed, became the second top-10 seed to be eliminated on Tuesday after Dominic Thiem was bounced Sunday. 

Tuesday was a calm day on the women's singles side, as Ashleigh Barty led a collection of 10 seeded players to move into the second round. 

The women's draw does not have Naomi Osaka, Petra Kvitova or Bianca Andreescu anymore, but eight of the top 10 seeds made it into the second round, which starts Wednesday.

          

Tuesday French Open Results

Men's Singles

No. 1 Novak Djokovic def. Tennys Sandgren, 6-2, 6-4, 6-2

No. 3 Rafael Nadal def. Alexei Popyrin, 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (3)

Jan-Lennard Struff def. No. 7 Andrey Rublev, 6-3, 7-6 (6), 4-6, 3-6, 6-4

No. 9 Matteo Berretini def. Taro Daniel, 6-0, 6-4, 4-6, 6-4

No. 10 Diego Schwartzman def. Yen-Hsun Lu, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3

No. 14 Gael Monfils def. Albert Ramos Vinolas, 1-6, 7-6 (6), 6-4, 6-4

Andreas Seppi def. No. 20 Felix Auger-Aliassime, 6-3, 7-6 (8), 4-6, 6-4

No. 21 Alex De Minaur def. Stefano Travaglia, 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (4)

No. 24 Aslan Karatsev def. Jenson Brooksby, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4

Ricardas Berankis def. No. 29 Ugo Humbert, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4

For a few minutes, Nadal had the potential to look mortal on a surface he has dominated for most of his career. 

Popyrin took a 5-2 lead in the third set. The combination of him succumbing to the pressure of winning a set against Nadal and the Spaniard's skill on the clay took that opportunity away from Popryin.

Nadal broke Popyrin's serve at 4-5 and then went on to force a tiebreak, which he controlled through a 7-3 victory. 

Nadal was pushed to a tiebreak twice during his 2020 title run, but both of those instances occurred in the second week of the tournament. 

In the first four rounds of the 2020 tournament, Nadal outscored his opponents by a combined score of 72-23. 

Djokovic faced far less of a test from American Tennys Sandgren in the tournament's last first-round match. The top-seeded Serbian breezed through the three-set contest. 

Rublev and Felix Auger-Aliassime were not as lucky as the top seeds, as both of them were ousted in the most shocking results of Tuesday's play. 

Rublev lost the first two sets to Jan-Lennard Struff and then appeared to recover with victories in the third and fourth frames. However, the No. 7 seed unraveled in the fifth set by committing nine unforced errors and losing both of his break-point opportunities. 

Rublev finished with an edge in a majority of the top stat categories, but his mistakes in the final set doomed his potential to advance. 

Auger-Aliassime did not have a chance to get back into his match in the fifth set because he lost in four to Andreas Seppi. The 20th-seeded Canadian has struggled on the clay more than any other surface. He suffered first-round exits in each of the last two years. 

          

Women's Singles

No. 1 Ashleigh Barty def. Bernarda Pera, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2

No. 5 Elina Svitolina def. Oceane Babel, 6-2, 7-5

No. 9 Karolina Pliskova def. Donna Vekic, 7-5, 6-4

No. 13 Jennifer Brady def. Anastasija Sevastova, 6-3, 6-3

No. 17 Maria Sakkari def. Katarina Zavatska, 6-4, 6-1

No. 18 Karolina Muchova def. Andrea Petkovic, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4

No. 24 Coco Gauff def. Aleksandra Krunic, 7-6 (11), 6-4

No. 25 Ons Jabeur def. Yulia Putintseva, 7-5, 6-2

No. 30 Anett Kontaveit def. Viktorija Golubic, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5), 6-0

No. 32 Ekaterina Alexandrova def. Venus Williams, 6-3, 6-1

Barty had a bit of trouble putting away Bernarda Pera, but she staved off any concern about her status in the match by winning the third set in commanding fashion. The 2019 French Open champion converted on two of her three break-point opportunities and won 50 percent of her 28 receiving points in the final frame. 

The No. 1 seed was much more efficient for the duration of the match, as she had the better percentage on first serve and on second-serve points. The American also committed 24 more unforced errors than Barty. 

Barty could face more difficult challenges in the coming rounds since the other three seeds in her section advanced on Tuesday. 

In fact, three of the four sections in the top half of the women's singles draw have all four seeds remaining.

Elina Svitolina, Karolina Pliskova, Jennifer Brady and Maria Sakkari all advanced through straight-set wins on Tuesday. 

American teenager Coco Gauff also won in straight sets, but she took a tougher path to reach that result. She played one of the longest tiebreakers of the tournament to date against Aleksandra Krunic. 

Gauff outlasted Krunic 13-11 in the first-set tiebreak and then battled through the second set to move one win away from an all-American third-round battle with Brady. 

         

Statistics obtained from RolandGarros.com.

Rafael Nadal continued his dominance at Roland Garros with a 6-3, 6-2, 7-6(3) win over Alexei Popyrin in Round 1 of the 2021 French Open.

HE'S HOME. 👑@RafaelNadal captures his first win on the road to title #14, taking out Popyrin in straight sets: 6-3, 6-2, 7-6(3).#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/ynMSXoamBA

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 1, 2021

The 13-time winner of this event cruised through the first two sets before finding some rare resistance in the third. Popyrin went up a break and built a 5-2 lead in the third set before settling for a tiebreak.

Nadal eventually took over for the win, improving to 101-2 in his career at Roland Garros. It sets the No. 3 seed up for a second-round match against Richard Gasquet, who defeated Hugo Gaston in a first-round battle of Frenchmen.

Few have been able to match up with Nadal on clay courts during his career, but he was not overlooking his 21-year-old opponent in Round 1.

"Popyrin is a dangerous one," he said, per ATPWorldTour.com.

Nadal showed he was serious early in the match, winning his first two sets thanks to his excellent serve:

Talk about domination. 🤯@RafaelNadal just won his 300th career set, taking it from Popyrin 6-3.
Stream live → https://t.co/tPoe44TDv0#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/ty0zXOK8NJ

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 1, 2021

Raise your hand if you're happy to see Rafa back on the Parisian clay. ✋@RafaelNadal is now one set away from victory, taking the second 6-2.
Stream live → https://t.co/tPoe44TDv0#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/0LFQGxnZyq

— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 1, 2021

The Spanish star didn't face a break point in the first set and saved the only chance Popyrin had in the second set.

It was a different story in the third as the underdog showcased his athleticism in getting to everything.

He's got wheels! 👏@AlexeiPopyrin99 | #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/fu6iClPEBN

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 1, 2021

A break in the sixth game allowed Popyrin the chance to take a set from Nadal, something that hasn't happened often in Paris.

Yikes, Alexei.

It's tough to win a set vs Nadal at #RolandGarros.

Since 2016, only three players did it: Schwartzman, Goffin, Thiem.

— José Morgado (@josemorgado) June 1, 2021

Nadal is 299-27 in sets @rolandgarros going into this 1st Rd match, meaning that the first set he wins against Popyrin will be the 300th career set that he's won!! @TennisChannel

— Steve Weissman (@Steve_Weissman) June 1, 2021

Nadal eventually saved two set points and fought his way back to 6-6, keeping the momentum with a 7-3 win in the tiebreak.

It wasn't a perfect match from Nadal, but he won 81 percent of his points on his first serve and 72 percent of service points overall. That would be enough to beat most opponents as he seeks his 14th Roland Garros title.

Considering he already has a statue outside the court, it will be difficult to bet against the 34-year-old.

Rafael Nadal was immortalized Thursday when a statue of the 13-time French Open champion was unveiled at Stade Roland-Garros in Paris.

The Roland-Garros Twitter account shared a photo of Nadal and the new statue:

Now Rafa never has to leave 😁

More on the statue created to pay homage to the 13-time champion and his unmatched RG legacy 👇#RolandGarros

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 27, 2021

According to the Roland-Garros website, the statue was created by Spanish sculptor Jordi Diez Fernandez and it stands nearly 10 feet tall.

The statue is located near the general public entrance gate, meaning tennis fans will be greeted by the likeness of the greatest clay-court player of all time when they attend the French Open.

The 34-year-old Nadal is among the greatest players ever, having won a career Grand Slam and a total of 20 Grand Slam titles.

He has won the French Open in each of the past four years.

No other player comes close to Nadal's dominance at Roland-Garros in the Open Era, as Bjorn Borg's six French Open titles are second on the list.

Rafa will look to make it 14 overall and five in a row when he competes in the 2021 French Open beginning on Sunday.

Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are all on the same side of the men's draw for the 2021 French Open. 

The unusual draw was made possible by the seedings of Nadal and Federer. The Spaniard was handed the No. 3 seed, and the Swiss is eighth. 

The positioning of the three legends will allow one of the younger stars of men's tennis to reach the final at Roland Garros. 

On the women's side, the last two winners at Roland Garros are on the top half of the draw. 2019 winner Ashleigh Barty could be on a collision course with reigning champion Iga Swiatek in the semifinals. 

The same could happen with Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams, who were aligned in the bottom half of the draw along with Aryna Sabalenka, Bianca Andreescu and Petra Kvitova.

The bottom half of each draw will begin play Sunday and Monday, while the first round of the top half will be played Monday and Tuesday. 

The full French Open schedule can be found on RolandGarros.com. 

            

French Open Odds

Via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Men's Singles

Rafael Nadal (-125; bet $125 to win $100)

Stefanos Tsitsipas (+450; bet $100 to win $450)

Novak Djokovic (+500)

Alexander Zverev (+1100)

Dominic Thiem (+1200)

Andrey Rublev (+4000)

Casper Ruud (+4000)

Jannik Sinner (+4000)

      

Women's Singles

Iga Swiatek (+275)

Ashleigh Barty (+500)

Aryna Sabalenka (+800)

Naomi Osaka (+1200)

Garbine Muguruza (+1400)

Bianca Andreescu (+2000)

Petra Kvitova (+2000)

Coco Gauff (+2500)

Serena Williams (+2500)

Typically, only two of Nadal, Federer and Djokovic land in one part of the draw because they usually are the top three seeds in a major. 

Federer's long injury layoff pushed him down to No. 8, while Daniil Medvedev's recent play pushed him above Nadal to No. 2. 

As NBC Sports' Nick Zaccardi noted, it is the first time the Big Three are aligned in the same half of a major tournament draw. 

With the Big Three in the top half, one of Dominic Thiem, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alexander Zverev and Medvedev have a clear path to the final without facing one of the legendary major champions. 

Medvedev carries the loftiest expectations into Roland Garros because he is the No. 2 seed, but he has never won a main-draw match on the Paris clay. If Medvedev gets over that hump, he could carve a path into his third Grand Slam final. He lost to Djokovic in the 2021 Australian Open final. 

Thiem should be viewed as the favorite to come out of the bottom half since he appeared in back-to-back French Open finals in 2018 and 2019. At +1200, Thiem may have the best betting value to win the tournament because of his history at the event. 

On the women's side, Swiatek and Barty are listed as the top two betting favorites, which means there will be value further down the board for the winner of the bottom half of the draw. 

The top half of the draw looks even tougher since 2016 champion Garbine Muguruza and 2017 winner Jelena Ostapenko are on that side of the bracket. 

Ostapenko will go head-to-head with No. 4 seed Sofia Kenin, who lost to Swiatek in the French final last October. 

Williams is the most recent French Open winner in the bottom half of the bracket, but she faces a tough path just to get to the quarterfinals. Angelique Kerber and Kvitova are in her part of the draw. 

Osaka, Andreescu and Sabalenka have easier draws in the bottom half, and that could lead to betting any of them to win the title. Osaka sits at +1200, Andreescu is +2000, and Sabalenka is the third favorite at +800. 

The women's draw has a better chance of producing a long-shot winner, like Swiatek in October, but picking out which player could achieve that feat is a tough task, especially with all of the previous major winners littered through the draw. 

     

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