On his comeback to the Grand Slam competition at the French Open on Monday, defending champion Novak Djokovic triumphed in straight sets and 13-time Roland Garros champion Rafael Nadal cruised to victory, while Naomi Osaka was eliminated in the first round.
Djokovic overcame Yoshihito Nishioka of Japan 6-3, 6-1, 6-0 in the first night session at full capacity in Paris in his first major match since losing the US Open final last year.
The number one player in the world converted eight of eighteen break points against Nishioka on a day interrupted by rain on Court Philippe Chatrier.
“I’m happy to be back. Roland Garros is one of the biggest tournaments in the world, and the memories from last year still are fresh in my head, in my mind,” said Djokovic.
“I have to be pleased overall. I always expect the highest from myself, so I can always do better, but was a very good start of the tournament,” added Djokovic.
Osaka and Krejcikova out
Naomi Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, was defeated 7-5, 6-4 by Amanda Anisimova, the same opponent who stopped the Japanese star’s title defence at the Australian Open earlier this year.
On her comeback to Roland Garros, Osaka served eight double faults and made 29 unforced mistakes after withdrawing in 2021 after refusing to honour mandated media duties before revealing she was suffering from depression.
“I thought I tried really hard, and I just feel like it was a bit unfortunate because I wasn’t able to play as many matches leading into this tournament,” said Osaka,