Naomi Osaka ducks exit from Roland Garros

Japans Naomi Osaka battled back from a set and a break down to reach the Roland Garros second round on Tuesday while Grand Slam underachiever Alexander Zverev needed four hours to get through his opener Top seed Osaka bidding to add the French Open to her US and Australian Open titles defeated Slovakias Anna Karolina Schmiedlova 06 76 74 61However she came within a whisker of becoming only the second top seed to lose in the first round in Paris in the modern era after Angelique Kerber in 2017 I was really close so it hurts I lost so many chances said Schmiedlova Maybe I felt like it was against the world number one It was not easy in my head World number 90 Schmiedlova who hadnt won a match at the tournament since 2014 twice served for victory in the 10th and 12th games of the second setAt one stage she was just two points away from a famous victory But Osaka who had arrived in Paris still feeling the effects of a hand injury suffered in Rome battled back to setup a second round duel with former world number one and twotime major winner Victoria Azarenka Osaka was broken three times in the opening set losing it in just 20 minutesAnna Karolina SchmiedlovaThe 21yearold hit 13 unforced errors while the Slovakian didnt need to hit a single winner Former top 30 player Schmiedlova failed to serve out the tie at 54 and 65 in the second set That was the cue for Osaka to illustrate the gap of 89 places between her and the slender blonde in the world rankings She broke three times in the 25minute final set to extend her streak at the Slams to 15 successive winsOsaka ended the match with 10 aces 36 winners and 38 unforced errors with just four of those coming in the decider Azarenka a semifinalist in 2013 reached the second round for the first time since 2015 with a 64 76 74 win over 2017 champion Jelena Ostapenko World number 43 Azarenka triumphed in a match punctuated by 13 breaks of serve and 60 unforced errors by Ostapenko who hasnt won a match at the tournament in her last two visitsGerman fifth seed Zverev a quarterfinalist in 2018 battled past Australias John Millman 76 74 63 26 67 57 63 in a shade over four hours The champion in Geneva last weekend fired 57 winners past world number 56 Millman who stunned Roger Federer at the US Open last yearKarlovic wins at 40However he also committed 73 unforced errors on a blustery day in the French capital John is a tough player so I knew it would be difficult today said Zverev bidding to become the first German man to win the Roland Garros title since Henner Henkel in 1937 Next up for Zverev is Swedish qualifier Mikael Ymer the world number 148 of Ethiopian origin who marked his Grand Slam debut with a 60 63 76 75 win over Slovenias Blaz RolaArgentine eighth seed Juan Martin del Potro a semifinalist in 2009 and 2018 made the second round with a 36 62 61 64 win over Chilean world number 58 Nicolas JarryI think Im playing well at the moment but my main goal is still the knee my health said Del Potro who is still feeling his way back after knee surgeryNext up for the giant Argentine is a clash against Japans Yoshihito Nishioka Canadas Bianca Andreescu the surprise champion at Indian Wells marked her Roland Garros debut by beating Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic 57 64 64 The 18yearold playing for the first time since Miami after suffering a shoulder injury hit 58 winners and 60 unforced errorsIvo Karlovic made a mockery of his 40 years to beat relative spring chicken 37yearold Feliciano Lopez in the oldest ever mens matchup at Roland Garros Croatian Karlovic the tallest player on the tour at 6ft 11in 211m defeated Lopez 76 74 75 67 79 75 He is the oldest man to win a Grand Slam match since Ken Rosewall in 1978Later Tuesday defending champion Simona Halep faces Australias Ajla Tomljanovic the world number 47 who reached the fourth round in 2014Catch up on all the latest sports news and updates here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates