Federer Has More Issues Off Court Than On It In French Open Win; Sharapova, Murray Monday

The top two Swiss players in the world, Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka, both breezed to first round wins Sunday at the French Open, but then took issue with the tournament after.

2009 champion Federer raised his record to 8-0 against Alejandro Falla dispatching the Colombian 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 to win his 48th straight Grand Slam first round match. But after as he was was leaving the court, the Swiss, who is playing in his 62nd consecutive Slam, was approached by an intruder asking for a selfie.

“Normally I only speak on behalf of myself, but in this situation I think I can speak on behalf of all the players, that that’s where you do your job, that’s where you want to feel safe,” Federer said. “And so clearly I’m not happy about it. But nothing happened, so I’m relieved. But clearly it wasn’t a nice situation to be in.”

In the second round on Wednesday Federer will met Spaniard Marcel Granollers.

“If it’s Marcel Granollers, in the past at US Open, it was not that easy for me against him,” Federer said. “He plays well. I think he defeated Gaël in Madrid. Is that correct? A very long match, I think. Drawn-out match. So he’s good. He’s skilled.”

Not long after, Stan Warwinka, who defeated Marcel Ilhan 6-3, 6-2, 6-3, also took aim at the tournament for posting a trashy article about his off court love life.

“There are things going on in my private life, but in Switzerland they haven’t talked about it much,” Wawrinka said in French. No specific problem about my private life in Switzerland. They didn’t go too far there. Of course, when you read an article on the official site of a tournament, I mean, you can have some questions about the journalist and who checked the article. For me it’s a very bad article, and I hope that it won’t the case in the future and the person who has written this article, I hope this person is not a journalist.”

Wawrinka takes on Serb Dusan Lajovic next.

Other winners were Kei Nishikori, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Roberto Bautista Agut and Ernests Gulbis who is defending semifinal points this week.

“No,” Gulbis said when asked about feeling pressure. “I would feel maybe pressure if I would have a great year and then I would like to continue. But now I just feel very relieved and happy that I won the first round. I know that second round is also an opponent who I can beat (Mahut). Also I saw the draw a little bit. There is really not somebody who I cannot beat in next couple rounds, so slowly, slowly I start to find my game. Today was okay. Not perfect. But now it’s only Wednesday. One day off, one day practice, take it easy.”

Seeded losers were Ivo Karlovic and Guillermo Garcia Lopez who lost to Steve Johnson in the only men’s match that went past three sets, with the American winning in five.

On the women’s side, Ana Ivanovic avoided a first set scare to beat Slava Shvedova 4-6, 6-2, 6-0.

“It was a little bit of tough start,” Ivanovic, the 2008 French champion said. “I didn’t have many matches coming into the tournament, so I was really happy that I manage in the second set to sort of play a little bit deeper and put a little bit more pressure on her. In the third set I really felt like, okay, I was playing my game. I worked really hard last week. I was really trying to rely on that. I knew I put the work I had to put in, so that gave me confidence. Even after first set I really tried to look for my game, and I was really happy to turn it around.”

Simona Halep and Ekatarina Makarova also won. The lone upset was Donna Vekic upending French hope Caroline Garcia in three sets 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.

“I am disillusioned, every French Open I can’t play tennis whether I’m playing a top-10 player or Vekic, who is a good player,” Garcia said. “I can’t make it here. It doesn’t depend on the opponent. It just depends on myself, and I can’t play here at the French Open and hope that it will change in the future.”

Tomorrow, Andy Murray put his perfect clay record on the line against Argentine Facundo Arguello. Tomas Berdych, Gael Monfils and Gilles Simon are also in action.

For the women, Defending champion Maria Sharapova returns and in the match of the day, former No. 1 Venus Williams takes on Sloane Stephens.

MONDAY FRENCH OPEN SCHEDULE
Philippe-Chatrier Court 11:00 AM Start
Alize Cornet (FRA)[29] vs. Roberta Vinci (ITA)
Lucas Pouille (FRA) vs. Gilles Simon (FRA)[12]
Kaia Kanepi (EST) vs. Maria Sharapova (RUS)[2]
Andy Murray (GBR)[3] vs. Facundo Arguello (ARG)

Suzanne-Lenglen Court 11:00 AM Start
Yoshihito Nishioka (JPN) vs. Tomas Berdych (CZE)[4]
Virginie Razzano (FRA) vs. Veronica Cepede Royg (PAR)
Gael Monfils (FRA)[13] vs. Edouard Roger-Vasselin (FRA)
Sloane Stephens (USA) vs. Venus Williams (USA)[15]