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French Open Second Service: Nadal and Djokovic breeze through; Barty makes admission


In Second Service today, we take a look back at day three at the French Open, which included wins for Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic and an admission from Ash Barty. 

Firstly, 13-time Roland Garros champion Rafael Nadal sailed through his opening encounter against Alexei Popyrin 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (7-3).

The Spaniard extended his record to 101-2 on Parisian soil and admitted he was happy with the way he played against a perilous opponent.

“I am pretty happy with the way I played today. Not an easy match with Alexei who is a dangerous player,” Nadal said in his on-court interview.

Rafael Nadal

Take a look at Nadal’s full quotes here

World No 1 Novak Djokovic also prevailed in straight-sets beating Tennys Sandgren 6-2 6-4 6-2, though admitted he had mixed emotions following his victory.

“It was strange, honestly, but I’m also honoured to be the first men’s night session match [in the] history of this tournament, of this court,” Djokovic said,

Novak Djokovic Monte Carlo Masters 2021

Read more about what Djokovic had to say here

From one World No 1 to another, Ash Barty made an admission following her three sets victory over Bernarda Pera.

The Australian, who received treatment before the deciding set, admitted to a flare up through her left hip which could impact her French Open chances.

“It’s going to be a little bit tough this week,” Barty said in her press conference.

“I think over the weekend we had a bit of a flare-up through my left hip, which obviously just needed a bit of help today, needed some assistance to try and release it off as best I could.”

BARTY 2021 ROLAND GARROS FRENCH OPEN

Take a look at Barty’s full quotes here

Andrey Rublev became the second seed in the top 10 to lose in the first round after defeat to German star Jan-Lennard Struff.

The Russian battled back from two sets down to level the match, before losing the final set after three hours and 49 minutes.

“Of course I was thinking that I would like to come back from 0-2 [sets down], In the fifth set, I was a bit unlucky,” said Rublev in his post-match press conference.

Andrey Ruble French Open

Read more about what Rublev had to say here

Petra Kvitova’s woes at Roland Garros continued after being forced to withdraw with an ankle injury sustained during her post-match duties on Sunday.

Kvitova beat Greetje Minnen in three sets to reach the second round, though took to social media to announce her inability to continue at the event.

“It’s incredibly bad luck, but I will stay strong and do my best to recover in time for the grass-court season.”

Kvitova French Open

Take a look at Kvitova’s full quotes here


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Tim Farthing, Tennishead Editorial Director & Owner, has been a huge tennis fan his whole life. He's a tennis journalist and entrepreneur as well as playing tennis to a national standard. He also helps manage his local club and volunteers for his local tennis organisation. He's a specialist in content about the administration of professional tennis and tennis coaching for all levels.