PARIS/STARNBERG, May 26, 2025
The top seeds in the men’s draw at Roland Garros got off to a strong start on Monday, as Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz both claimed confident opening-round victories. With high expectations on their shoulders and title ambitions in sight, the two young stars began their Paris campaigns in commanding fashion, setting the tone for what promises to be an exciting fortnight on the clay at the Bois de Boulogne.
World No. 1 Sinner defeated Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech 6-4, 6-3, 7-5 in two hours and 15 minutes in the night session under the lights on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
“First-round matches, they are never easy, so I’m very happy with how I handled the situation, especially in the third set,” Sinner said afterwards.
“Coming through in straight sets means a lot. We’ve played each other a couple of times before, so we know each other a little bit; he’s an amazing player.
“I was just trying to focus on my side… He played very, very well in the third set; the first break was very important, because 5-0 it’s nearly impossible to come back. I tried to gain confidence again; he made a couple of mistakes when he was serving for the set, so that gave me a little help. [I was] just trying to have a good mindset, the right attitude on court, and I’m very happy with how I did that.”
Alcaraz edges past Zeppieri, awaits Marozsan
Earlier in the day, defending champion Alcaraz defeated Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 on Court Suzanne-Lenglen. The World No. 2 withstood six aces and broke his opponent’s serve four times to prevail after one hour and 58 minutes.
The reigning champ @carlosalcaraz kicks off his Roland-Garros campaign in style ✨#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/PQD34rWSco
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 26, 2025
“It was really, really solid,” said Alcaraz. “The first round of the tournament is never easy, coming here as the defending champion could be even tougher. But I just started pretty well, and kept my good pace during the whole match. I tried to be focused on my game, to get a good rhythm.
“I’m just really proud of my start here at Roland Garros, where I was really excited to play my first match this year.”
Up next for Alcaraz will be Hungarian Fabian Marozsan, who upset the Spaniard at the ATP Masters 1000 in Rome last year. The Murcia native, however, avenged his loss with a straight-set win in Indian Wells earlier this season.
Altmaier knocks off Fritz
The day’s biggest headline came from outside the spotlight matches, as Germany’s Daniel Altmaier pulled off the upset of the day by knocking out No. 4 seed Taylor Fritz in a dramatic four-set battle. Altmaier’s bold and resilient performance stunned the US-American, shaking up the draw early and reminding fans that anything can happen in Paris.
On Court Simonne-Mathieu, Altmaier hit 46 winners and won 52 per cent of the total points played to secure a 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory in two hours and 43 minutes.
“I played a very solid match. I like his game style and I was able to show a very good performance today,” the World No. 66 said after his third victory against a Top 10 player at Roland-Garros. “I like the big tournaments and competing in best-of-five matches. During longer matches, you usually get your chances and the they also include mental parts.”
Elsewhere, Gabriel Diallo of Canada edged No. 18 seed Francisco Cerundolo from Argentina 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 in two hours and 11 minutes.
Swiatek downs Sramkova
In the women’s draw, Iga Swiatek started her title defence with a 6-3, 6-3 first-round win over Rebecca Sramkova of Slovakia. The No. 5 seed from Poland capitalized on four of her 10 break-point opportunities to advance in one hour and 26 minutes.
“For sure it wasn’t an easy match especially because she played with a lot of freedom and I felt like she was going for her shots, especially the forehands down the line,” Swiatek said. “I knew I needed to stay proactive and try to create and use my weapons and that’s what I did.”
The 23-year-old from Warsaw will next play Emma Raducanu. The 41st-ranked Briton fought past Xinyu Wang of China 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 in two hours and 43 minutes.
