On the evening of the second round, this Thursday, the eternal question will arise, as every year, at this early stage of the Roland-Garros tournament: how many French people will still be on the courts? A few are still playing this Thursday, starting with the heroes of the first round, Gilles Simon and Hugo Gaston.
Simon with which legs?
He finished his first game in the night from Tuesday to Wednesday in 5 innings at 1:15 am. In what state will Gilles Simon be at the end of the afternoon when he enters the center to face the American Steve Johnson? He will inevitably have heavy legs, especially since he played and lost a double with Gaston in two sets on Wednesday. If the 92nd player in the world takes him around the four corners of the court, Simon will find it difficult to follow. But it doesn’t matter: he is playing his last Roland-Garros and what better setting than the Philippe-Chatrier court to bow out like his friend Jo-Wilfried Tsonga two days earlier.
Gaston, favorite of the arena
He has a special connection with the land here. Hugo Gaston achieved one of the feats of the first round by beating the Australian Alex de Minaur. He finds, this Thursday, the same setting, the Suzanne-Lenglen court, to challenge the Argentinian Pedro Cachin ranked 153rd in the world. Here is a great opportunity for the Toulousain. Ranked No. 74, he is the favorite which, on clay, does not happen every day for a Frenchman. Two years after going to the round of 16, is he able to make us live another great epic? And why not ?
Alizé Cornet plays at night
The night session of the day is feminine. Alizé Cornet, who is playing her 61st Grand Slam tournament in a row, has the honors of the night match on the central. The task promises to be tough for the Frenchwoman opposed to the Latvian Jelena Ostapenko number 13 in the world. Two other tricolors are on the program of the day with in front of them sacred customers: Caroline Garcia challenges, thus, the American Madison Keys (n° 22) when Loelia Jeanjean faces Karolína Pliskova, the Czech number 8 in the world.
Some stars are there
The three giants, Nadal, Djokovic, Alcaraz, played on Wednesday. As a result, the public present on this Ascension Thursday may feel frustrated. There is no doubt enough, but there are still beautiful people on the courts: Daniil Medvedev the world number 2 at the start of the day on the central, Iga Swiatek the world number 1 on the Lenglen just before the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas or even Andrey Rublev. Still having fun.
The program (from 11 a.m.)
Court Philippe-Chatrier. Djere (Serb.) – Medvedev (Rus.); Keys (USA) – Garcia (Fra.); Simon (Fra.) – Johnson (USA); Cornet (Fra.) – Ostapenko (Lat.)
Court Suzanne Lenglen. . . . Cachin (Arg,.) – Gaston (Fr.) ; Swiatek (Pol.) – Risky (USA) ; Collar (Tch.) – Tsitsipas (Gre.).
Court Simonne-Mathieu: Jeanjean (Fra.) – Pilsokoa (Tch.); Tiafoe (USA) – Goffin (Bel.); Halep (Rou.) – Zheng (Ch.); Rublev (Rus.) – Delbonis (Arg.).