French Open: Musetti earns stylish win on 'memorable' court; Perricard downs Bergs in opener

Paris, May 25 (IANS) Italy's Lorenzo Musetti marked his return to Court Philippe-Chatrier with a dazzling first-round triumph over Yannick Hanfmann while local star Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard secured a contrasting triumph over Zizou Bergs in another opening round match at the French Open here on Sunday.

Musetti, the eighth seed competing at the iconic venue for the first time since winning the bronze medal at last year’s Paris Olympics, delivered a stylish all-court performance to move past qualifier Yannick Hanfmann 7-5, 6-2, 6-0 at Roland Garros.

With his opening win at the clay-court major, Musetti improved to 23-5 on the surface since July, including a run to his maiden ATP Masters 1000 final in Monte-Carlo last month.

In contrast, Mpetshi Perricard, the 21-year-old Frenchman, fed off the energy of a lively home crowd to notch a thrilling 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(5), 6-4 triumph over Zizou Bergs on Monday. The French player trailed 0/5 in the second-set tie-break but reeled off seven consecutive points to move ahead under the roof of Court Suzanne Lenglen.

Other early winners on Sunday in Paris included 12th seed Tommy Paul, who rallied past lucky loser Elmer Moller, 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-3, 6-1 in the pair’s maiden Lexus ATP Head2Head clash. The American, who is in the second round for the fifth time in his career, will take on Marton Fucsovics, who defeated wild card Tristan Schoolkate 6-4, 6-2, 6-2.

However, the focus was on Musetti as he made his return to Paris count.

At a career-high No. 7 in the ATP Rankings, Musetti has enjoyed a significant breakthrough during the European clay swing. In Rome earlier this month, he became the first Italian in history to reach the semifinals at all three Masters 1000 events on the surface in one season.

Having lost his previous ATP head-to-head clash with Hanfmann in Madrid in 2023, Musetti was eager to mark his recent rise with an impressive first-round performance, and he did so after a testing opener. The 23-year-old countered Hanfmann’s big serving with ease, highlighted by a stunning backhand return winner in the seventh game of the second, one of five straight points Musetti won from 40/0 to break for a 5-2 lead.

Overall, Hanfmann won just 49 per cent (31/63) of points behind his first delivery, according to Infosys Stats, during the two-hour, seven-minute match. By improving to 9-4 at Roland Garros, Musetti set a second-round meeting with local wild card Valentin Royer or lucky loser Daniel Elahi Galan.

Down 0-5, Mpetshi Perricard was in deep trouble and faced the prospect of losing the match in front of a partisan home crowd. But he clawed his way back and held his own in the later stages of the match.

“At 0/5, I tried to make it back little by little,” said Mpetshi Perricard. “I tried to go point by point, then at 5/5, 6/5, with the whole crowd behind me, I felt [great]. It was a tough match, physically, so I will do my best to be ready for Wednesday,” Mpetshi Perricard was quoted as saying by the official website.

With the score level at one set apiece, Mpetshi Perricard was on the brink of falling to a 1-2 deficit. But from 0/5 in the tie-break, the 6’8” Lyon native promptly fired two aces to keep his hopes alive. Bergs then showed signs of tension with a sloppy forehand unforced error before the Frenchman stretched for a stunning pass to reclaim the mini-break for 4/5.

The 31st-seeded Mpetshi Perricard then found two mighty serves, which were both backed up by forehand winners to earn a set point, on which Bergs hit a double fault. It marked the end of an absorbing tie-break and sparked raucous cheers, which were amplified due to the atmosphere under the closed roof.

--IANS

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