Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka has crashed out of the French Open in the first round to Frenchman Corentin Moutet in his first Grand Slam appearance in 18 months.
The 37-year-old Swiss - who did not play for a year, after suffering a foot injury early in 2021 and having surgery twice - paid the price for a lack of match practice, with a 2-6 6-3 7-6(2) 6-3 loss in just under three hours.
"I started well and it was a good first set, but unfortunately, it was disappointing to lose," said Wawrinka. "Unfortunately, this is the reality of how I play at the moment.
"I need training, a lot of work. I am playing well, but not at the level for matches like that.
"This is the reality unfortunately of where I am."
Wawrinka had only returned to action at a Challenger Tour tournament in March, yet the 2015 Paris winner started well.
He showed no lingering effects from his injury, when he had to stretch in a full sprint to whip a stunning forehand down the line to earn a quick early break and go 3-1 up in the first set.
Consecutive double faults by wildcard Moutet handed the first set to Wawrinka, but the tables turned, with the Frenchman bagging the second set, after mixing it up and charging to the net more often.
Moutet broke the Swiss again to take the lead in the third, as Wawrinka's first serve faltered and unforced errors began to rise.
"The frustration does not come from a comparison of my past level, but because I know I could have done more and that some things did not go well," Wawrinka said.
Moutet wasted two set points at 5-2 and survived a brief Wawrinka comeback, before clinching the third comfortably in the tiebreak and racing through the fourth to book a spot in the second round.
Japanese Naomi Osaka also crashed out in a 7-5 6-4 first-round loss to American Amanda Anisimova, a year after her dramatic withdrawal from the clay court Grand Slam with mental health issues.
Up against 27th seed Anisimova, four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka never looked comfortable on her least favourite surface, as she struggled to control her powerful game.
The first three games all went against serve in a tense start, but Anisimova held to go 3-1 ahead.
A backhand error by Anisimova allowed Osaka to level for 3-3, but a double fault in the 11th game allowed Anisimova to move 6-5 up and she held serve to love to take the set.
Anisimova broke decisively for 4-3 in the second set, as Osaka again double-faulted.
After a couple of match points went begging, Anisimova finished it off with a stunning backhand winner down the line.
Osaka withdrew from the tournament in 2021, after boycotting post-match media duties for mental health reasons.
In the build-up to last year's French Open, Osaka said she would not attend the obligatory news conferences for players after matches, as they impacted her mental wellbeing.
At that time, she revealed she had suffered from depression for almost three years, but returned to competitive tennis at the Tokyo Olympics, after the saga cast a spotlight on players' post-match media duties.
Roland Garros organisers conceded they could "do better" on mental health this year.
Reuters
