‘Terrible’ Wawrinka crashes out in Paris
The Australian Open winner and third seed never looked comfortable in heavy conditions after a wet day in Paris and fell 6-4 5-7 6-2 6-0 to Spain’s Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.
When Wawrinka lifted his first Masters trophy in Monte Carlo last month it looked like he could potentially add the French Open crown to the one he so stunningly won in Melbourne in January.
But he was in trouble virtually from the start on Court Philippe Chatrier and became the first Australian Open champion to lose in the opening round in Paris since Petr Korda in 1998.
Wawrinka said: “I was completely flat. I was not really relaxed with my game. I wasn’t aggressive. I was playing some bad rallies. Everything was terrible. I always put a lot of pressure on myself. But before the match and during the match it was not really about only the pressure.
“I think it’s just a different story. Now it’s a different picture for my career. I need to put the puzzle back together, but differently than in the past.”
There were no alarms for either Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic as they eased into the second round.
Many eyebrows had been raised when Monday’s order of play was released showing eight-time champion and world number one Nadal opening his campaign on Suzanne Lenglen, Roland Garros’ second court.
It was certainly strange scheduling but Nadal found the surroundings much to his liking as he dispatched American wild card Robby Ginepri 6-0 6-3 6-0.
Predictably, he insisted he did not feel snubbed, saying: “It doesn’t really matter a lot. Always playing Roland Garros is a pleasure for me, it’s a real honour and a special feeling.”
The only gripe from Nadal, who next meets exciting 20-year-old Dominic Thiem, was about the condition of the court. There were two lengthy delays for rain but mostly play continued despite the bad weather.
Nadal said: “The balls were very heavy, very wet. Why don’t they dry the court before we start playing? The court is soaked with water. Why don’t they do anything?”
Djokovic, who was given a spot on Philippe Chatrier for his 6-1 6-2 6-4 win over Joao Sousa.
In the women’s section Maria Sharapova once again showed the remarkable turnaround in her clay-court game cruising into the second round.
The 2012 champion shrugged off an hour-long rain delay to defeat fellow Russian Ksenia Pervak 6-1 6-2 in 61 minutes.
Serena Williams remains the major obstacle, though, and they are likely to meet in the quarter-finals next week.
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