Pouille stops from the start, Thiem passes the first round… What to remember from Monday’s qualifying day

Roland Garros 2024 edition, it starts today. The first qualifying matches for the French internationals started on Monday May 20, with some great names on display: Dominic Thiem, Lucas Pouille, Benjamin Bonzi, Benoît Paire, Hamory Tan… Here is the results of this first qualifying day, on Parisian ocher.

Lucas Pouille cracks against Hamad Medjedovic

The first French headliner to set foot on the ocher of Roland Garros, Lucas Pouille did not last long. The Frenchman, 165th player in the world, lost in two sets (6-3, 7-5) against the Serbian Hamad Medjedovic, 134th in the ATP, and took the door in the first round of qualifying.

The match was interrupted by rain at the start of the second set, after a first set largely missed by the local, suffering greatly from his opponent’s returns.

Once the roof of the Suzanne-Lenglen was unfolded, the game resumed its course but with no possibility of a comeback for Lucas Pouille, who had nevertheless managed to reach the second round during the previous edition.

The Frenchman even offered victory to his opponent with a shutout lost on his serve. The young 20-year-old Serbian, winner of the last Next Gen Masters, will face another of his compatriots, Filip Krajinovic, 761st in the world and surprise winner of the American Martin Damm, 179th in the world, during the second round.

Dominic Thiem darling of the public on Lenglen

Dominic Thiem was the real attraction of these qualifiers. And the Austrian, who is experiencing his last Roland-Garros, fulfilled the objective by qualifying for the next round after 2h21 and a victory in three sets (3-6, 6-3, 6-2) against the Italian Franco Agamenone, 228th in the world. The double-finalist at Roland-Garros is only two matches away from an eleventh appearance in a row in the big draw.

Relegated to 131st in the world, after climbing to third place at his best ranking in 2020, he was pushed all the way by the Parisian public, who had filled the aisles of the Suzanne-Lenglen for the occasion. In the next round, Thiem will face Finnish Otto Virtanen, 156th in the world and still looking for a first presence in the final draw.

Enzo Couacaud and Manuel Guinard the only French outsiders

The Frenchman Enzo Couacaud, 210th player in the world, was the first Frenchman to reach the second round of qualifying by beating the South Korean Seong Chan Hong, 191st in the world, in three sets (6-7, 6-2, 6-1 ).

His success unfortunately did not inspire the young Gabriel Debru, 18 years old and 341st in the ATP rankings, beaten in three sets (4-6, 6-3, 7-5) by the Monegasque Valentin Vacherot, 116th in the world, in an atmosphere madness on court number 14. The resident of the Principality, who will face Couacaud in the next round, was even the victim of a copious bronca from the French public after an outrageous celebration after his victory.

Manuel Guinard, 28 years old and 225th in the world, had a success against the Ukrainian Vitaliy Sachko, 192nd, also in three sets (6-4, 6-7, 6-1). He will face Briton Billy Harris, 202nd in the world, in the next round. Calvin Hemery, 218th in the world, took the door against the Croatian Duje Ajdukovic, 130th, in a defeat in two sets (6-4, 6-2).

Harmony Tan saves the honor of French women

The first Frenchwoman to discover the qualifications for the 2024 edition, Jenny Lim only stayed one hour and 19 minutes on the Suzanne-Lenglen court. The 19-year-old player, 499th in the world, was swept away by Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich, 104th in the WTA rankings, in two sets (6-4, 6-2). Same fate for Carole Monnet, 22 years old and 194th in the world, soundly beaten by the Spaniard Irene Burillo Escorihuela, 280th, in two sets (6-3, 6-0).

Guests Sarah Iliev and Daphnée Mpetshi Perricard both spent barely an hour on the courts, eliminated respectively by Slovak Rebecca Sramkova (6-4, 6-1) and Dutch Suzan Lamens (6-1, 6-0). ). Selena Janicijevic, 218th in the world, long believed she would shake Croatia’s Jana Fett, 126th, after clinching a third set. But the Frenchwoman finally lost (2-6, 6-0, 6-3).

The only tricolor victory in the women’s table bears the name of Harmony Tan, after a 3h39 battle against the German Nastasja Schunk, 527th in the world (6-7, 7-6, 6-3). The 233rd in the WTA rankings needed four match points to conclude, in tears. In the second round, she will face Argentina’s Julia Riera, seeded number 2 in these qualifications.