Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Radio France Internationale
Radio France Internationale
Sport
Paul Myers

Djokovic brushes aside Fucsovics to reach third round at French Open

Third seed Novak Djokovic beat Marton Fucsovics from Hungary in straight sets in the second round night match to move into the last 32 at the French Open in Paris. AP - Thibault Camus

Third seed Novak Djokovic disposed of the unseeded Hungarian Marton Fucsovics in straight sets on Wednesday night to move into the third round of the French Open.

Djokovic, who is seeking a third title at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, won 7-6, 6-0, 6-3 in two hours and 44 minutes.

"I found my best level in the second and third set," said Djokovic. "I wasn't surprised with how it went in the first set. I know Marton well and I know that he can play good tennis on any surface."

Djokovic, after claiming an early break in the opener, struggled to hold serve and was constantly fending off break points.

But he managed to keep his nose in front and served for the set leading 5-4.

At break point down, he double faulted for the first time in the match allowing Fucsovics to level at 5-5.

The Serb won the first three points of the tiebreak and though Fucsovics cut Djokovic's lead to 4-2, another surge gave him the shoot-out seven points to two after 90 minutes.

Speed

The second set whizzed by in a third of the time. And the match was effectively over once Djokovic secured a double break to go 5-2 up and the chance to serve for the match.

The 36-year-old fluffed his lines but wrapped up affairs with another break of Fucsovics' serve.

"There's lots of wind and it makes the ball very difficult to control," said Djokovic about the inconsistencies. "But it's the same for all the players. There's more humidity in the night games and we have to adapt."

In his next match, Djokovic will take on the 29th seed Alejandro Davidovic Fokina after the 23-year-old Spaniard disposed of the Frenchman Luca van Assche in straight sets.

Elsewhere in the top half of the men's draw, the world number one Carlos Alcaraz needed four sets to get past Taro Daniel from Japan.

The seventh seed Andrey Rublev also dropped a set in his victory over the Frenchman Corentin Moutet but there were straight sets wins for the fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and the 11th seed Karen Khachanov.

In the women's draw, the home favourite Caroline Garcia cracked during her match against the unseeded Russian Anna Blinkova.

The fifth seed was a set and break up on centre court. However, the 29-year-old Frenchwoman lost her path and Blinkova eventually sealed the tie on her ninth match point 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 to reach the third round for the second time in four visits.

Second seed Aryna Sabalenka continued her quest for back-to-back Grand Slam trophies.

The Australian Open champion beat her fellow Belarusian Iryna Shymanovic 7-5, 6-2.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.