Associated Press
PARIS, France — Home favorite Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was on the brink of an early French Open exit when play stopped for darkness at Roland Garros late Tuesday.
The 12th-seeded Frenchman was losing 7-5, 6-4, 6-7 (6), 5-4 to French Open debutant Renzo Olivo of Argentina when the match was interrupted.
Cheered by a passionate home crowd, Tsonga valiantly fought his way back into the match after losing the opening two sets, but the Frenchman was broken in the fourth for a second time to leave 91st seed Olivo serving for the match.
Earlier in the day top-seeded Andy Murray progressed safely to the second round, beating Andrey Kuznetsov of Russia 6-4, 4-6, 6-2, 6-0.
American John Isner is also through after beating Australian Jordan Thompson in four sets.
In all, of the 11 men from the United States who entered the main draw at Roland Garros, only Isner and No. 25 Steve Johnson remain in the tournament. It’s the first time since 2011 that as few as two Americans got to the second round in Paris.
In the women’s draw, 3rd seed and 2014 runner-up Simona Halep beat Jana Cepelova, while 5th-seeded Elina Svitolina beat Yaroslava Shvedova to progress.
Their victories followed yesterday’s shock first round defeat for number one seed Angelique Kerber.
The French Tennis Federation, meanwhile, has said that Maxime Hamou’s accreditation at the tournament has been revoked after he repeatedly tried to kiss a female reporter during an interview.
The 21-year-old French qualifier, who lost to Pablo Cuevas in the first round on Monday, held the Eurosport TV journalist around her neck as she tried to move away during a live interview at Roland Garros.
The federation issued a statement criticizing Hamou’s “reprehensible behavior with a journalist yesterday,” and said its disputes commission will investigate the case “for improper conduct.”
[aesop_gallery id=”4915″ revealfx=”off”]
Donald J. Trump • May 30, 2017 at 5:41 pm
what a big, beautiful, powerful photo gallery