Tennis rivals Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic increase hurdles at French Open
French Open Preview: Jannik Sinner Faces Richard Gasquet in Final Contest
Paris—Top-seeded Jannik Sinner will take on a retiring Richard Gasquet at the French Open on Thursday, while Novak Djokovic looks to sharpen his game in the second round in his pursuit of a 25th Grand Slam title.
Second-seeded Coco Gauff and 18-year-old Mirra Andreeva are aiming for a place in the last 16. Sinner, 23, faces his second French opponent in a row at Roland Garros. The Italian, who returned from a three-month doping suspension earlier in May, exhibited signs of rustiness against Arthur Rinderknech in his first match back but managed to win.
Sinner, who reached the final of the Italian Open prior to his return, has a 3-0 head-to-head edge over Gasquet, 38, and a 1-0 lead on clay at Roland Garros. Their most recent match at the French Open occurred in the second round in 2024, which Sinner won in straight sets.
Sinner expressed gratitude to Gasquet for his friendship during his doping ban and expressed excitement at sharing the court with him. "I'm just happy to share a court with him," Sinner told the crowd after his win.
Djokovic, fresh off his 100th ATP title last weekend, faced crafty Frenchman Corentin Moutet in the second round. "I spent quite a bit of time in making sure that every step of the way in preparation and prevention is respected in order for me to still be able to play on this level." Djokovic said.
Third-ranked Alexander Zverev, sixth-seeded Andreeva, and other notable players such as Gauff, Pegula, Keys, Monfils, Vondrousova, Azarenka, Kenin, and Krejcikova are also set to play on Thursday.
meanwhile, Gauff laughed off an amusing incident that led to her arriving on court without any racquets ahead of her first-round win. The American, who targets her first title since last year's WTA Finals, will face Czech qualifier Tereza Valentova in her second match.
[Source: ATP Tour, WTA Insider]
[1] Tennis Head-to-Head: Jannik Sinner vs Richard Gasquet (https://www.tstrong.com/tennis-head-to-head/Sinner-vs-Gasquet/)[2] Jannik Sinner vs Richard Gasquet: Head to Head H2H Stats (https://www.atptour.com/en/players/jannik-sinner/vs/richard-gasquet/head-to-head-stats)[4] Jannik Sinner vs Richard Gaset: Matches (https://www.atptour.com/en/players/jannik-sinner/matches/VS_166635.aspx)
- In the index of their past encounters, Jannik Sinner and Richard Gasquet have played three matches, with Sinner holding a 3-0 advantage.
- The upcoming match between Sinner and Gasquet at the French Open will be the fourth time they play tennis on the clay court, with Sinner leading 1-0 in this specific setting. [Reference(s): 1, 2, 4]
