After the hullabaloo surrounding his chequered preparations for the French Open, Rafael Nadal continued his relatively serene progress through the opening rounds of the tournament with a 6-1, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Russia's Andrey Kuznetsov that was every bit as straightforward as the scoreline suggests.
The win keeps Nadal on course for a projected quarter-final clash against the top seed and world No1 Novak Djokovic, who earlier won 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 against the talented Australian teenager Thanasi Kokkinakis. Djokovic, twice a beaten finalist at Roland Garros, won in an hour and 49 minutes to stretch his recent unbeaten streak to 25 matches.
Andy Murray moved into the fourth round in a strangely disjointed win over a wounded Nick Kyrgios on Court Suzanne Lenglen on Saturday.
It was a routine win in the end – 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 in two hours, Murray finishing the task with a rasping backhand crosscourt.
“It was a tough match because he was going for huge shots, and making me play quite far behind the baseline,” Murray said. “I tried to break up his rhythm. He was struggling with his elbow, which slowed down his serve, one of his big weapons.
“It’s never easy for me here on clay, But the matches haven’t been too long. They’re going to get tougher every round next week. And there’s one guy [Rafael Nadal]in this tournament who has won it nine times and I’ve never been to the final. So far this has been my best season on clay.”
Kyrgios needed attention to his already sore right wrist and elbow after the second set, exclaiming loudly to his box: “I can’t serve. I’m literally rolling the ball in the court.”
The young Australian – who had to withdraw after seven games against Dominic Thiem in Nice recently – hung in bravely although his serve dipped as low as 134kph in the closing stages. But his groundstrokes even before then were way too loose to stay competitive against Murray, who looked to be cruising for most of the match.
Kyrgios, one of the game’s legitimate entertainers, left to loud applause. It won’t be the last time he threatens to make the second week at Roland Garros.
