Enzo Couacaud d Egor Gerasimov 7-6(3) 6-3 6-4
The Frenchman was the slight favourite pre-match, but with French crowd behind Couacaud, it was great win for the 26yo, playing some inspiring tennis for the crowd.
Fabio Fognini (27) d Gregoire Barrere 6-4 6-1 6-4
Despite the Frenchman leading midway through the first set, it was ultimately the Italian to overcome a slow start and take the victory. Fognini's ability to change direction with the flick of his wrist is something not many of the top players can do, but he does it so effectively.
Pablo Andujar d Dominic Thiem (4) 4-6 5-7 6-3 6-4 6-4
The upset of the tournament so far! The man who most recently defeated Roger Federer has now defeated the no 4 seed! Especially from a 2-0 set lead, the world no 4 should not have given a lead away, especially to a 35yo. Most 35yo would give up, but Andujar is the pick of the bunch with an amazing mentality to never give up. Something the next gen should learn.
Pablo Carreno-Busta (12) d Norbert Gombos 6-3 6-4 6-3
The Spaniard was too hot to handle! His aggressive style against Gombos worked wonders, taking 4 breaks throughout the match, and not giving a service game to Gombos.
Henri Laaksonen d Yannick Hanfmann 6-1 6-3 4-6 6-2
Laaksonen was just too good against the German. Hanfmann expected to play better, but the more experienced player went on to the second round, playing some great aggressive tennis.
Guido Pella d Daniel Galan 6-3 7-6(4) 7-5
Galan had his chances, as he broke 5 times throughout the match, mainly at the starts of the set, but it was the more experienced of the two to come out on top; a common theme at Grand Slams.
Miomir Kecmanovic d Daniel Evans (25) 1-6 6-3 6-3 6-4
A slow start from the Serb, and despite the crowd being behind Evans, the more natural clay-courter took the reigns.
Roberto Bautista-Agut (11) d Mario Viella Martinez 6-4 6-4 6-2
This game went as expected, with RBA in straight sets, with the handicap spot on! RBA only being broken once, but as expected in a longer match form against another spirited Spaniard.
Karen Khachanov (23) d Jiri Vesely 6-1 6-2 6-3
In a very convincing first round win, the Russian was winning 86% of his first serves, showing how much of a threat he is when his serving is working. They played each other last French Open, being a much tighter affair, with 3 tiebreakers in a 4 set duel.
Marton Fucsovics d Gilles Simon 6-4 6-1 7-6(5)
A great start, followed by some cramps/injury deep in the third set made it very possible for the Frenchman to have a dream comeback in what could have been his last match at the French Open ever, but the Hungarian was as hungry as ever, and clinched a tiebreaker. It will be interesting to see how he fairs up against Fognini in the second round.
Mackenzie McDonald d Emil Ruusivuori 4-6 6-3 7-6(4) 6-3
On paper, the American has a much better clay record, but it was the man from Finland winning the first set in a tight affair. After a well-fought first set, the viewers would be able to see the decline in quality, and with that, generally means the more experienced player starts taking control. This is exactly what happened, as McDonald took the second set confidently, and was clinical in the third set; little too late for a late 'Finnish'.
Marcos Giron d Grigor Dimitrov (16) d 2-6 4-6 7-5 3-0 (WALKOVER)
Grigor stayed focused and composed in his first three sets, leading 5-1 40-0 on Giron's serve, but an injury which looked similar to his back spasms in the Australian Open this year may have reoccurred. Giron then won the next 9 games until the world no 17 retired.
Kei Nishikori d Alessandro Giannessi 6-4 6-7(4) 6-3 4-6 6-4
This was a match, where the man from Japan was always going to win; it was just a matter of time. Nishikori had numerous chances nearly closing out the match, but the spirited Italian pushed the former world no 4 to five sets.
Cristian Garin (22) d Juan Ignacio Londero 3-6 6-4 7-6(6) 6-2
In what was a slow start from Garin, seeing himself down double breaks in both the first and second set, the Chilean managed to grab the second and third set, when he did not have the right to. Similar to Ruusivuori, Londero dropped a level of intensity, and Garin took advantage.
Laslo Djere d Corentin Moutet 6-3 6-7(10) 7-5 7-5
In a very close match statistically, it was the more experienced player to once again come out on top in Roland Garros. Many thought an upset may be on the cuff here, and Moutet showed signs of brilliance, but ultimately it was not good enough to go past the Serb.
Alexander Zverev (6) d Oscar Otte 3-6 3-6 6-2 6-2 6-0
Classic 'Double Fault' Zverev was out on show today, doing so eight times throughout the match. As with most matches when he's down a set or two, the world no 6 manages a way to pull his head in and play some consistent tennis, defeating his fellow compatriot in a more dominant last 3 out of 5 sets.
Alejandro Davidovich Fokina d Mikhail Kukushkin 6-4 6-4 6-3
The Spaniard was too good for the man from Kazakhstan. It was a relatively straight-forward match, with Kukushkin continuing his winless streak with 0 wins on clay this season. Fokina, a more natural clay-courter ran away with the match with good serving consistency.
Roman Safullin d Carlos Taberner 7-6(4) 1-6 6-0 6-2
Previewing this match, Taberner looked the better opponent, but Safullin took it to the Spaniard, in a dominant final two sets. The battle of the qualifiers can be a bit unpredictable, but it's Safullin who plays the sixth seed in Zverev in the second round.
Botic van de Zandschulp d Hubert Hurkacz (19) 6-7(5) 6-7(4) 6-2 6-2 6-4
In an amazing display of tennis from Zandschulp, a comeback against a seeded player is almost unheard of! (Unless you're Andujar!) Only giving two breaks of serve away, the man from Holland won the mental battle, which most argue is the most important battle. The longer the match went on, the more convincing the win for Botic. Despite a closer fifth set, it was not enough as Hurkacz seemed to be cramping in his forearm, and led Zandschulp to the second round, where he will face Davidodich Fokina.
Stefanos Tsitsipas (5) d Jeremy Chardy 7-6(6) 6-3 6-1
In a clinical display from Tsitsipas, 75% win on first serve was an awesome stat to have on his side. Chardy is not as manoeuvrable on the court compared to the Greek God, so the longer the match went on, the more one-sided the match became. Tsitsipas showed little nerves; a great sign to get through his quarter, comparing to Garin, who had a shaky first round, and Dimitrov retiring from his first round due to injury.
