(Paris) The Swiss Stan Wawrinka delivered a 4:35 marathon on Monday at the age of 38 to overcome the Spaniard Albert Ramos (67e) 7-6 (7/5), 6-4, 6-7 (2/7), 1-6, 6-4 in the first round of Roland-Garros.
The 2015 winner, who had not passed the first round on Parisian clay since 2020, will face the Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis (108e).
Former world No.3, three-time Grand Slam winner, Wawrinka is trying to regain his best level after two seasons marred by injuries.
After being eliminated in the second round of the Australian Open in 2021, he had missed the next four Majors. He returned to a Grand Slam at Roland Garros last year to string together first-round defeats at Paris, Wimbledon, the US Open and this year at the Australian Open.