Rafael Nadal

Nadal is into the second round having expended minimal energy while Osaka is out but remains a central focus.

- Victoria Azarenka (15), Belarus, def. She has won the US Open, she has won Wimbledon and she has won the Australian Open. Roland Garros is the one missing. On Monday at Roland Garros, she could barely walk by the end. - Emma Raducanu (12), Britain, def. - Amanda Anisimova (27), United States, def. She does not lack for star quality either. That stubbornness is a growing facet to Osaka’s game, whose lack of defensive tools makes her an unnatural challenger on clay. You might have forgiven her for shying away from this occasion, especially with the excuse of an injury all too easy to make. It is past this historic quote that Naomi Osaka walked for her first match at Roland Garros since her fraught campaign in Paris a year ago. I don’t know. “How things would be or if I didn’t get injured? Then, even 24 hours ago, we wondered whether he would be able compete properly.

Rafael Nadal shrugged off his ongoing battle with injury after beginning his bid for a 14th Roland Garros title with a clinical straight-sets victory.

“At the end, I understand both sides,” he said diplomatically. “And how is my level of confidence? So I’m not a big fan of thinking about the things that could happen if… How the things would be or if I didn’t get injured, I don’t know. “Without a doubt, things are easy in this world to understand, no? We are in Roland Garros. I am here to try my best.

RAFAEL NADAL eased into the second round of the French Open with a defeat of Jordan Thompson.

As he went down 2-5 in the second set, he angrily hit a ball out of the Centre Court and was hit with a code warning by English umpire Alison Hughes. Nadal finished the encounter on his first match point when Thompson slapped a backhand into the net after just over two hours. Thompson became the first ever Aussie to beat Andy Murray in a Tour-level match at Queen’s Club in 2017 when the Scot was world No 1.

Rafael Nadal may have a chronic left foot problem and stress fracture in one of his ribs, but none of it appeared to matter in his first match at Roland ...

McEnroe called Djokovic the favorite on a recent Podcast with me. Nadal, who turns 36 on June 3, would need to win six more matches to capture his 14th Roland Garros title and it won’t be easy. He improved to 106-3 at the event.

RAFAEL NADAL struggled to sign the camera in celebration of his opening win at the French Open.

I am very happy with the win in straight sets and to get through the first round,” he said after breezing through his opening round. And the most successful player in the tournament’s history managed to bounce back by dropping just six games across three sets to Thompson on Monday - his first match at the French Open since he suffered a semi-final defeat to Djokovic last year. Rafael Nadal was forced to tell the French Open cameraman to “stop” as he struggled to sign the lens in celebration of his opening-round victory against Jordan Thompson. The 13-time former champion in Paris suffered a recent injury scare but proved he was still one of the favourites for the title with a comprehensive 6-2 6-2 6-2 victory in two hours and two minutes.

Rafael Nadal eased through the opening round of the French Open claiming victory against Jordan Thompson.

Your complete guide to Rafael Nadal's next match in the French Open 2022 including match time, date and how to watch it live.

How to watch Rafael Nadal at the French OpenStreaming platform discovery+ will have full coverage from each court, with every match available to watch live and on-demand. He overcame three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, who is in the process of returning from a long-term injury, to book his place against Nadal. Nadal only dropped six games in a straightforward victory over unseeded Australian Jordan Thompson to cruise into the second round.

JORDAN THOMPSON lost to Rafael Nadal in the first round of the French Open.

It came back even harder and I wasn’t even close to the ball. “I thought I was in trouble going out there and then, after that first point, I don’t know how I won it, but I was thinking ‘S***. That’s what I’ve got to do to win a point?’,” the 28-year-old said. Rafael Nadal’s first round opponent at the French Open has explained what it’s like to face the 13-time champion at his most successful tournament.