Coco Gauff booked her place in the French Open third round with another straight-sets victory over Tamara Zidansek.

The third seed is yet to drop a set at Roland Garros in her opening two matches, but was made to work for her 6-3 6-4 win over the former Roland Garros semi-finalist.

Zidansek broke in the opening game on the way to a 3-1 lead, but Gauff broke back in game six, and again in game eight on the way to drawing first blood.

The players exchanged two breaks apiece to leave the set finely poised at 4-4, until the American's crucial break in the ninth game paved the way for victory.

The 2022 runner-up will play either Dayana Yastremska or Wang Yafan in round three.

Data Debrief: Gauff matches Evert

The 20-year-old has now registered 17 match wins at the French Open. That is as many as the great Chris Evert managed before turning 21.

In fact, only Kathy Rinaldi Stunkel and Mary Joe Fernandez have registered more victories amongst American women before the age of 21.

Iga Swiatek survived a huge scare before eventually seeing off Naomi Osaka in a thrilling second-round clash at the French Open.

After winning the opening set, the reigning champion was pegged back by her Japanese opponent, and trailed 4-1 in the decider before saving match point at 5-3 behind.

However, she dug deep to prevail 7-6 (7-1) 1-6 7-5 as Court Philippe-Chatrier was treated to a blockbuster battle of the four-time major winners.

The opening set went the distance with Swiatek eventually dominating the tie-break to draw first blood. However, Osaka broke at the start of the second as she came roaring back to level the contest.

The world number 134 built on that momentum, saving several break points while also breaking her opponent for a commanding 4-1 advantage.

She then reached match point at 40-30 in game nine, and stood on the brink of becoming only the third player to beat Swiatek at Roland Garros after Simona Halep and Maria Sakkari.

However, a trio of untimely backhand errors - two into the net and one long - allowed the top seed to survive and break back, and she did not look back from there.

Osaka double-faulted at the end of game 11 to hand Swiatek another break at 6-5 up, and she successfully held out for victory after her opponent sent a forehand wide.

Data Debrief: Swiatek matches Steffi and Seles

It was touch and go at one point but, at 22 years and 363 days old, Swiatek is the third-youngest player after Monica Seles and Steffi Graf to win 16 consecutive matches at the French Open during the Open Era.

Meanwhile, the Pole has now won 69 of her 70 completed WTA main-draw matches on clay after winning the opening set.

Carlos Alcaraz survived a stern examination of his French Open credentials as he overcame qualifier Jesper de Jong in four sets to reach the third round on Wednesday.

The Wimbledon champion looked set for another routine victory when he raced into a two-set lead, but the 23-year-old Dutchman refused to go quietly in a gruelling three-hour, 11-minute contest decided by a 6-3 6-4 2-6 6-2 scoreline.

De Jong, ranked 176th in the world, was given a standing ovation after a brave performance which had Alcaraz on the ropes, finding joy with a series of inventive drop shots.

The momentum seemed to be with him when he claimed an early break in the fourth set, but Alcaraz broke straight back, rediscovering his composure following an angry outburst at his box.

Alcaraz then made it successive breaks as De Jong began to tire, with a series of unforced errors proving costly as the Spaniard took the contest away from him.

Data Debrief: Alcaraz passes important test

Should Alcaraz go on to win his third grand slam title at Roland Garros, he may well look back on Wednesday's match as an important milestone as he was pushed to his limits after an injury-affected few weeks.

He has now won 13 of his first 16 singles matches at the French Open, and either Sebastian Korda or Kwon Soon-woo will await him in the third round.

David Goffin has claimed a member of the crowd spat chewing gum at him during Tuesday's first-round win over Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard at the French Open.

Goffin was booed by the crowd on court 14 after his 4-6 6-4 6-3 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 win over the home favourite and responded by cupping his ears.

The Belgian – who reached his highest singles ranking of seventh in 2017 – will face Alexander Zverev in the second round on Thursday, after the German eliminated Rafael Nadal.

He was enraged by the treatment he received during his opening match, accusing French tennis fans of being less respectful than their counterparts at other grand slams. 

"Clearly, it goes too far, it's total disrespect. It's really too much," Goffin told reporters. "It's becoming football, soon there will be smoke bombs, hooligans and there will be fights in the stands.

"It's starting to become ridiculous. Some people are there more to cause trouble than to create an atmosphere.

"Someone spat out their chewing gum at me. It was getting complicated. That's why I wanted to stay calm. If I started to get angry about it, it could have destabilised me.

"I think it only happens in France. At Wimbledon, obviously, there's not that. Or in Australia either. At the US Open, it's still rather quiet. Here, it's a really unhealthy atmosphere."

Novak Djokovic fought off a stern challenge from Pierre-Hugues Hubert to make a successful start to his French Open title defence on Tuesday.

The world number one held off the challenge of the home favourite to win 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, setting him on his way to a potential 25th Grand Slam title.

Djokovic enjoyed a fairly comfortable first set but had to work hard to win the second as Hubert took a more aggressive approach. He steadied in time for a crucial tie-break though, holding his nerve to secure it.

The Serbian regained control in the final set, sealing the win after a double fault from Hubert to set up a second-round tie against Roberto Carballes Baena.

Data Debrief: Djokovic's title defence off to a good start

Djokovic (367) trails only Roger Federer (369) for Men’s Singles match wins at Grand Slam events in the Open Era, and could overtake him with a strong showing at the French Open.

He is now 72-2 in opening round matches at Grand Slam events, winning his past 69 such matches. Djokovic’s last opening round loss came via retirement at the 2011 US Open against Conor Niland.

Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have the ability of the 'Big 4' if they can keep up their consistency, former world number six Gilles Simon believes.

Alcaraz won his first grand slam title at the US Open in 2022, becoming the youngest world number one in the history of the ATP rankings at 19 years, four months, and six days, before winning his first Wimbledon title in 2023.

Alcaraz beat Daniil Medvedev to win Indian Wells in March but has since struggled with an arm injury, with his last match before Roland Garros coming in the quarter-final of the Madrid Open on May 1.

He beat J.J. Wolf in straight sets on Sunday to progress to the second round of the French Open, where he will face Jesper De Jong.

Simon, speaking at the Roland-Garros eSeries by Renault tournament, believes in the Spaniard's ability, comparing him to some of the big names in the sport.

He said: "I think that Alcaraz has the level of the big 3 or big 4 that we've had because he really has a level that's very high.

"In other words, when his tennis is up and running, it's really hard to beat him. And I see him at the same level as [Rafael] Nadal, Novak [Djokovic], [Roger] Federer, even at their best, because he's got that level.

"On the other hand, he can't keep it up at the moment, every week, with the consistency that those players have had. But he's young, he's still very young, and he's going to keep winning, keep progressing, keep raising his game.

"Maybe he'll reach the level of those players. Last year, we saw him do very well at Roland Garros but ultimately lose due to cramp. But then he wins at Wimbledon, and you think that's it, he's reached that level [of the big 3].

"Yes, he was there over that period, not over ten months for the moment. And I've no doubt he'll be there, but it's going to be complicated."

Meanwhile, Sinner has enjoyed a strong start to 2024 saw him win his first Grand Slam at the Australian Open, following up with wins in Rotterdam and Miami.

The Italian also cruised through his opening round at Roland Garros with a straight-sets win over Christopher Eubanks and is set to face Richard Gasquet next on Monday.

"As far as I'm concerned, [Sinner's] at a slightly lower level than Alcaraz. But his average level is higher than that of Alcaraz. So that's where it's interesting," Simon added.

"So far, Jannik has been able to show consistency for over six months, from the end of last season to his injuries at the start of the clay-court season.

"He's been in the final of almost every tournament for six months, or a winner. His consistency is reminiscent of that of the Big 4.

"But what's interesting is that he lost his big match at Indian Wells, against Alcaraz, who suddenly regained his level and overtook him. So that's how I see it."

Second seed Aryna Sabalenka emphatically progressed to the second round of the French Open with victory over Erika Andreeva on Tuesday.

Australian Open champion Sabalenka won 6-1 6-2 in just 68 minutes on Court Philippe-Chatrier in the first career meeting between the two players.

There were 27 winners from Sabalenka and just nine from Andreeva, who only showed the briefest resistance with a sole break early in the second set.

But strong favourite Sabalenka, a semi-finalist at Roland Garros last year, made an instant response by breaking back, ultimately winning five of the final six games to ruthlessly close out the victory.

She will play a qualifier – either Irene Burillo Escorihuela or Moyuka Uchijima – in the next round of the competition.

Data Debrief: Sabalenka extends first-round streak

Sabalenka has now won each of her last 15 first-round matches at grand slam tournaments, not suffering defeat at the first hurdle since a clash against Carla Suarez Navarro at the Australian Open in January 2020. 

She has also won six R1 matches in a row at the French Open, not suffering an opening-round loss in Paris since the 2018 edition.

Sabalenka will continue her bid to become the first female player to win both the Australian Open and Roland Garros in a calendar year since Serena Williams in 2015. Her record on clay this season is now improved to a healthy 12-3.

Andreeva, meanwhile, was always likely to find the going tough and won just eight of her 23 points on first serve as she was broken five times across the contest. The 19-year-old is yet to reach a grand slam second round.

Elena Rybakina began her French Open campaign with a dominant 6-2 6-3 win over Greet Minnen on Tuesday, teeing up a second-round clash with Arantxa Rus or Angelique Kerber.

Having been forced to withdraw from the Italian Open due to illness earlier this month, Rybakina made a rusty start as she dropped serve in the opening game.

However, she quickly recovered her composure to produce a powerful performance, firing off 36 winners and forcing 10 break points – four of which were converted.

Moving well throughout and excelling at the net, Rybakina converted her second match point after 74 minutes on court, ensuring smooth progress to the second round. 

Data Debrief: Rybakina ready to challenge Swiatek

Rybakina has been tipped to rival world number one Iga Swiatek at Roland Garros this year, and she now boasts a 9-1 record on clay for 2024.

Her win ratio on the surface this season stands at 90 per cent, with only Swiatek (93.8 per cent, 15-1) faring better on the WTA Tour.

Novak Djokovic remains capable of enjoying a successful 2024 but has been declining for some time, believes former world number six Gilles Simon.

Djokovic won three grand slam singles titles last year to take his overall tally to 24, equalling Margaret Court's overall record among male and female players.

However, he has been far from his best in 2024, going out to eventual winner Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open semi-finals and failing to capture a single ATP Tour title.

Djokovic was beaten by Tomas Machac in the last four at the Geneva Open last week and said on Monday he was "not expecting" to retain his French Open crown.

He begins his Roland-Garros campaign against Pierre-Hugues Herbert on Tuesday.

Speaking to Stats Perform at the Roland-Garros eSeries by Renault tournament, Simon feels Djokovic's downturn is only natural, given he turned 37 earlier this month.

Simon said: "You are in a very short media window and it is amazing how things change. Last year when he lost [the Wimbledon final to Carlos Alcaraz], I said that for me, he had one year left.

"It's more a question of age, there's a break around 37 or 38, when it gets tough. He was playing well last year, he won three grand slams, but I've seen him drop for a while now.

"For me, there were already signs on the court that he's dropping, but he was and still is completely capable of having a great 2024 season. 

"I have more doubts about the 2025 season, and I already had some last year, above all linked to the physical aspect."

Despite a difficult few months, Simon has no doubt that Djokovic – who is 14-5 for 2024 – can still put himself in contention for silverware. 

"Now he's in a slump, so everyone wants to bury him, but he's still capable of playing very well," he continued. 

"Last year it was [seen as] shameful to say that he was starting to drop, with people saying, 'You're talking rubbish, he's won three grand slams'.

"If I say now that he's playing well, they'll tell me he's finished, that he lost again in Geneva. Take it easy! We're not going to bury him. Nobody's going to bury Novak and he is still capable of great things.

"On the other hand, he's like everyone else. He's reaching an age where players like [Rafael] Nadal before him or like [Roger] Federer before him have dropped."

Rafael Nadal is unlikely to appear at Wimbledon in July, with the Olympic Games his focus following his early exit from the French Open.

Nadal played what is likely to be his final match at the French Open – where he has won a record 14 titles – on Monday as he suffered a 6-3 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 first-round loss to Alexander Zverev.

The Spaniard has repeatedly suggested he will call time on his glittering career at the end of 2024, having been hamstrung by hip and abdominal injuries in recent years.

Nadal previously said he wished to make farewell appearances at each grand slam, but he now believes transitioning to grass before Wimbledon will be difficult.

"For me now it looks difficult to make a transition to grass, then having the Olympics again on clay," Nadal said. "I cannot confirm anything. I need to talk with the team and analyse facts.

"But I don't think it's going to be smart after all the things that happened to my body to make a big transition to a completely different surface and then come back immediately to clay."

However, Nadal's participation at the Olympics – where the tennis tournaments will be held at Roland Garros – is subject to his fitness.

If he is able to play, Nadal – a two-time Olympic gold medallist – hopes to play doubles with world number three Carlos Alcaraz. 

"I cannot tell you if I will be playing or not in one month and a half, because my body has been a jungle for two years," he added.

"You don't know what to expect. I wake up one day and I found a snake biting me. Another day a tiger."

Asked about the prospect of teaming up with Alcaraz, he said: "If everything goes well, we are going to play doubles together here."

Daniil Medvedev staved off a Dominik Koepfer fightback to record a battling victory in the French Open first round on Monday.

The world number five raced out the blocks on Court Simonne-Mathieu and eventually triumphed 6-3 6-4 5-7 6-3 in Paris.

Medvedev, a five-time major runner-up and 2021 US Open champion, broke Koepfer's first service game in the French capital with that a seeming sign of things to come.

Though the 28-year-old dropped his serve in the first set, Medvedev had little trouble in responding with the score finely poised at 3-2 to claim first blood at Roland-Garros.

The fifth seed has only ever gone as far as the quarter-finals, three years ago, at the French Open but showed his clinical best to snatch the second set after holding all six service games for a narrow triumph.

World number 65 Koepfer battled back in the third but the resilient Medvedev responded by breaking his German opponent early in the fourth set, finally securing victory in just over three hours.

Data Debrief: Medvedev gets better of Koepfer again

Medvedev has won all four of his meetings with Koepfer, with his most recent such victory seeing him reach the second round at Roland-Garros for the third time in eight attempts.

Since the start of the 2021 season, Medvedev is 27-1 against players ranked outside the top 50 at major events, with his only loss in that run coming against Seyboth Wild in the French Open first round last year.

Koepfer, meanwhile, extends to 1-17 against top-10 players in his career, earning his only such victory against over Gael Monfils – then ranked ninth in the world – at the 2020 ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome.

Varvara Gracheva produced an eye-catching upset after sending Maria Sakkari crashing out of the French Open on Monday.

World number 88 Gracheva battled to a 3-6 6-4 6-3 victory on Court Simonne-Mathieu, claiming a notable Roland-Garros scalp in the first round.

Gracheva clinched five of six break points in an impressive fightback after falling a set down in Paris to sixth seed Sakkari.

Her reward will be a second-round meeting with Bernarda Pera, who overcame Japan's Nao Hibino in straight sets on the same day.

Data Debrief: Gracheva earns top-10 scalp

Gracheva will be bidding to make the third round in Paris for the third time in her career after Sakkari became the first big-name exit in the women's draw.

This victory against world number eight Sakkari marked Gracheva's fourth top-10 win in her career, and second win against such opponents in major events.

Rafael Nadal says there is a high chance he has appeared at the French Open for the final time after his first-round exit on Monday.

The Spaniard has won a record 14 titles on the clay courts at the Paris tournament, yet came unstuck in a straight-sets hammering by Alexander Zverev.

An emotional Court Philippe-Chatrier crowd watched on as Nadal was picked apart by the impressive Zverev, who triumphed 6-3 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 in just over three hours.

In doing so, Zverev became only the third player to defeat Nadal at Roland-Garros – after Robin Soderling and Novak Djokovic.

Yet this defeat could mark Nadal's last in the French capital as speculation swirls over the 37-year-old's future with injury issues persisting.

Nadal said after the loss: "It's incredible. I don't know if it's going to be the last time that I'm going to be here in front of all of you.

"I am not 100 per cent sure, but if it's the last time, I have enjoyed it. The crowd have been amazing during the whole week of preparation and today.

"The feelings I have today are difficult to describe in words. For me, it's so special to feel the love of the people in the place that I love the most."

Nadal has won 112 matches at Roland-Garros, the highest tally in men's singles main draws in the Open Era at a single major event.

The 22-time major winner adding to that impressive record appears unlikely.

"I have been going through a very tough two years in terms of injuries," he continued. "I went through all these processes with the dream to be here at Roland Garros.

"I was competitive, I had my chances, but it was not enough against a great player like Sacha.

"There's a big percentage that I will not be back here playing at Roland-Garros, but I can say that I've enjoyed playing here a lot.

"Maybe, in two months, I say it's enough and I can't give anything else, but it's something I don't feel yet.

"I have some goals. I hope to be back on this court for the Olympics, that motivates me. That's going to be another chance. I really hope to be well-prepared."

Rafael Nadal's possible French Open swansong came to an end following a straight-sets defeat by Alexander Zverev.

The German came out on top 6-3 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 in just over three hours on an emotional Court Philippe-Chatrier.

It is widely believed this will be the Spaniard's final appearance at Roland Garros, where he has won a record 14 titles, though the 37-year-old acknowledged he is not yet certain on his future.

The two players were back on Chatrier two years after their notorious semi-final showdown, which was curtailed when Zverev suffering a horrifying ankle injury that ruled him out for the remainder of the season.

However, fresh from his ATP Masters triumph at the Italian Open, the German was quickly into his stride this time around, winning 12 of his last 13 service points on the way to taking the first set.

The fourth seed, who has reached three successive French Open semi-finals, then prevailed in a nail-biting second-set tie-break, before a couple of breaks in the third paved the way for him to seal a commanding win.

Data Debrief: Third time lucky for Zverev

Whether or not that was Nadal's final match at the French Open remains to be seen.

What is certain is that his 14 titles are the most by any player in a single tournament in the Open Era, and his 112 match wins are the highest tally in men's singles draws in a single major event.

Of the 74 different opponents he has faced at Roland Garros, Zverev is only the third to defeat the Spaniard after Robin Soderling and Novak Djokovic.

Coco Gauff made a statement of intent as she steamrollered grand slam debutant Julia Avdeeva in the French Open first round.

The world number three needed just 52 minutes to complete a comprehensive 6-1 6-1 rout on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.

Runner-up to Iga Swiatek two years ago, Gauff has also reached a further two quarter-finals in her four previous appearances at Roland Garros

The reigning US Open champion, who reached the Italian Open semi-finals last time out on clay, wasted little time in launching her quest for another deep run in the French capital.

Avdeeva had come through three qualifying matches to secure her maiden appearance in the main draw of a major.

However, the world number 208 simply had no answer for a relentless Gauff, who did not face a single break point and lost just eight points in her seven service games.

Sealing her biggest victory in a completed match at Roland Garros, the 20-year-old set up a second-round clash with 2021 semi-finalist Tamara Zidansek.

Data Debrief: 50 up for Gauff

An Australian Open semi-finalist in January, Gauff's quickfire victory was also her 50th match win in the main draw of a grand slam, becoming the ninth American woman to reach that milestone before turning 21.

The 20-year-old lost just one point off her own serve, and is now 16-3 in first-round major matches (5-0 at Roland Garros).