Roland Garros: Five things we learned on Day 1: Old stagers give it a go

A troika of late thirty-something men displayed their skills. Two of them – Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka – in the first of the evening matches on centre court.

Me time

The Italian Lorenzo Sonego was full, full, full of himself after beating the French number one Ugo Humbert and the French fans watching the match on Court Suzanne Lenglen. The 29-year-old saw off the 17th seed 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 in two hours and 49 minutes to the chagrin of the partisans. "I really enjoyed the atmosphere," said Sonego who reached the last-16 at the French Open in 2023. "I tried to put every bit of energy into the court," he added. "I was really focused on my tennis, nothing about the crowd or the people outside. Yeah, I was really happy for my game."

Just in time

The new roof over Court Suzanne Lenglen – the second show court at the Roland Garros Stadium – was inaugurated in the morning on Day 1. The work of "starchitect" Dominique Perrault, it came in handy straight away. The heavens opened during the afternoon but play between local hero Richard Gasquet and Borna Coric from Croatia continued. Nice touch here, the roof has been constructed to resemble the pleats in the skirts worn by Suzanne Lenglen – La Divine as she was dubbed – during her pomp on the tennis courts of the world in the 1920s.

One more time

How many times?

Laud

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