Clijsters Stunned as Sharapova Survives in French Open Action
As second round action picked up at Roland Garros, perhaps the biggest upset on the men and women’s draw took place Thursday as the number two seed and one of the heavy favorites to win the French slam, Kim Clijsters, fell to Arantxa Rus of the Netherlands, 3-6, 7-5, 6-1. Clijsters seemed to have complete control of the match, but let it slip away along with two match points, giving the 20-year-old Rus the biggest win of her career. Clijsters’ defeat marked her earlier exit at the French Open in 11 years.
Conditions at Roland Garros were not all that friendly, with gusting winds affecting play, as the number seven seed Maria Sharapova of Russia experienced firsthand just how windy it was, spraying miss after miss. Sharapova, down a set and a break, was able to rally back to beat local French qualifier Caroline Garcia, 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 and advance.
On the men’s side, there were no real surprises as the majority of the big names earned their spots in the third round. Number one seed Rafael Nadal defeated his fellow Spanish countryman Pablo Andujar in straight sets.
Nadal, who trailed 5-1 in the third set, was pushed by Andujar for the majority of the match. However, Nadal was able to rally into a tie-breaker where he would clinch the match, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6(4). Andy Murray of Great Britain quietly made his way into the third round with a straight set victory of Italy’s Simone Bolleli, 7-6(3), 6-4, 7-5. The lone American remaining in the men’s draw, 10th-ranked Mardy Fish, has also booked a spot in the third round where he’ll hope to keep the U.S.’s chances alive after his 7-6, 6-2, 6-1 win over Robin Haase of the Netherlands.
Other notable names advancing on the men’s side include Sweden’s Robin Soderling and Fernando Verdasco of Spain, and on the women’s side, Li Na of China along with Agnieszka Radwasnka of Poland.
