French Open: Nadal draws first blood
Defending champion Federer was handed a tricky draw
Paris: Rafael Nadal claimed the first victory of the French Open yesterday after defending champion Roger Federer was handed a tricky draw while Serena Williams was on collision course with long-time rival Justine Henin.
Federer, whose Roland Garros win in 2009 allowed him to complete a career Grand Slam, opens against Australia’s Peter Luczak and could face Swiss compatriot Stanilas Wawrinka in the fourth round.
However, last year’s runner-up Robin Soderling, who sent Nadal crashing to his first French Open defeat in 2009, could be a quarter-final opponent.
The same applies to Latvia’s Ernests Gulbis, the man who beat Federer at the Rome Masters in April and Spain’s Albert Montanes who beat the top seed in the semi-finals in Estoril.
Should Federer make the semi-final, fourth-seeded Briton Andy Murray, who has a 6-5 career advantage over the Swiss, may be waiting. Murray has an intriguing first-round clash with France’s Richard Gasquet.
Nadal will face French wildcard Gianni Mina, the world 653, in his first round. Australian veteran Lleyton Hewitt is a possible third round opponent.
Fernando Verdasco, who has a 0-10 against the World No 2, is a potential quarter-final foe. World No 4 Novak Djokovic is seeded to meet Nadal in the semi-finals.
Federer, with a record 16 Grand Slam titles, has admitted he will go into the French Open with all the pressure off after finally winning a first Paris title.
Before Federer defeated Soderling in the 2009 final, he had lost the 2006, 2007 and 2008 finals to Nadal as well as the 2005 semi-final.
Enthusiasm
“Now I come into the tournament with more enthusiasm. In the past I never knew if I was happy or not about returning. It was always hard leaving Paris having lost the final and knowing that I’d have to come back the next year, face new challengers and win seven matches,” he said.
In the women’s draw, top seed Serena Williams, the 2002 champion, was handed a testing path with four-time champion Justine Henin a possible quarter-final opponent.
Henin, winner in 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007 before quitting the sport on the eve of the 2008 event, is playing here for the first time since her return to the game.
