French Open

The World No. 9 recovered from a slow start to overcome Peruvian qualifier Juan Pablo Varillas 2-6, 2-6, 6-1, 6-3, 6-3 in a dramatic opening day encounter on Court Philippe Chatrier. In a tight match, the Canadian struggled to cope with the World No. 122's variety and intensity in the first two sets, with the Peruvian visibly pumped on what was his Grand Slam debut. However, Auger-Aliassime managed to turn the tables as he cut down on errors.

Also, talented Spanish player Carlos Alcaraz joins the two stalwarts in the top half as the sixth seed, and could face Djokovic or Nadal in the semifinals. Alcaraz, who will be making his second appearance at the clay-court Grand Slam, has been placed in third seed, Germanys Alexander Zverev's quarter.

France does not bar unvaccinated people from entering its territory but imposes tougher restrictions than on those who have had the shot. Sports minister Maracineanu said International Tennis Federation (ITF) protocols at major events meant an unvaccinated player would be entitled to enter France and participate in Roland Garros, which begins in May.

Sindhu, a two-time Olympic medallist and reigning world champion, outclassed her opponent Jakobsen 21-15, 21-18 in the first round match. She will next face Line Christophersen of Denmark at the Stade Pierre de Coubertin in Paris. The world No 10 pair of Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy also progressed to the men's doubles round of 16 after beating Lee Jhe-Huei and Yang Po-Hsuan 18-21, 21-17, 21-13.

In a match that lasted two hours and 11 minutes, the duo became the first all-French team to triumph at Roland Garros twice. It is their fifth Grand Slam title overall, with the team having won the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and US Open titles once. "At the end, we're here with the trophy. It's amazing," said Mahut on Saturday.

Nadal has now reached 15 quarterfinals at Roland Garros and is tied alongside world No.1 Novak Djokovic. The win also means Nadal and Djokovic are on a collision course in the semi-final. Earlier in the day, Djokovic came back from a two-set deficit to overcome Italian teenager Lorenzo Musetti who retired in the fifth set and the Serbian moved into the quarterfinals.

"I've worked hard on my fitness and my game the past few weeks, so I feel like it's obviously improving. Of course, the more matches that I'm playing, the more confidence I'm getting. I'm happy that it's clicking during (the) French Open. I'm not going to complain about that," said Sofia after her 4-6, 6-1 6-4 win over Jessica.

Djokovic will next meet 19-year-old Italian Lorenzo Musetti, who survived a five-setter against compatriot and 2018 semi-finalist Marco Cecchinato, winning 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in three hours and seven minutes. This was the first five-setter of Musetti's career. Earlier, Italian 19th seed Jannik Sinner got the better of Sweden's Mikael Ymer 6-1, 7-5, 6-3 to make it to the pre-quarterfinals.

Aryna was the highest-ranked seed remaining in the tournament following the withdrawal of Japan's Naomi Osaka and the retirement of world No.1 Ashleigh Barty. After Aryna's loss, Americans No.4 seed Sofia Kenin and No.7 Serena Williams are the only top 10 player remaining in the bottom half of the draw.

Nadal allowed his French opponent, who he beat for the 17th time in a row, to win only nine points in the opening set while winning seven games in a row. "I think I played a great first set. [It was] one of the best of the clay-court season in my opinion. No mistakes, high intensity, winners, played long," Nadal told media after the match.