‘Unbelievable’: Grand Slam debutants relish the big stage
With 12 players in both the men’s and women’s wheelchair singles draws at Roland Garros for the first time, this year’s tournament has given a larger group of players the chance to show they belong on the sport’s biggest stage.
The expanded draws meant that five players contested their first Grand Slam matches on the opening day of the wheelchair event on Tuesday, with two – Martin de la Puente of Spain and Tokito Oda of Japan – securing victories to book their places in the second round.
“Unbelievable,” was De La Puente’s succinct summary of his first taste of Grand Slam action. The 22-year-old recorded a 6-0 6-0 victory over fellow debutant Guilhem Laget, of France, to set up a second round clash against Argentina’s Gustavo Fernandez.
“It’s a big opportunity for those who are below the eight best players in the world,” De La Puente continued. “Roland Garros… for us Spanish players, it’s a dream because Rafa is always winning here! We will try to do the same, but it's a dream come true just to be here.”
If he displays the form that carried him to victory over Laget on Tuesday, De La Puente could indeed cause Fernandez – a former champion here – some problems when the pair meet on Wednesday. And while the pair are clearly good friends, both will undoubtedly be determined to claim a victory that would see them advance to the semi-finals.
“Fernandez has been a very, very important person to me. He has been a very close friend on tour,” De La Puente said. “So I want to actually be like him on court. But I also want to have a chance to win!”
Oda’s victory was perhaps even more remarkable, with the 16-year-old becoming the youngest player ever to compete in the wheelchair event at a Grand Slam. The Japanese recorded a comfortable 6-1 6-3 victory over Frenchman Nicolas Peifer to advance to a second round clash against No. 4 seed Gordon Reid.
Elsewhere in the men’s draw, De La Puente’s compatriot Daniel Caverzaschi, another debutant, came close to upsetting Paralympic silver medallist Tom Egberink, but the Dutchman recovered to post a 4-6 6-1 6-4 victory. He plays two-time defending champion Alfie Hewett next. In the final match of the day, Stephane Houdet beat Joachim Gerard 6-2 7-6(3) to move forward to a clash against Shingo Kunieda.
Emmanuelle Morch was the only player in the women’s draw making her Grand Slam debut on Tuesday, and the Frenchwoman, who has enjoyed a strong 2022 season, came close to recording her first victory at a major – but she was eventually bested by Colombia’s Angelica Bernal, who fought back to win 3-6 6-3 6-2.
Elsewhere, Jiske Griffioen and Momoko Ohtani also recorded comeback victories, with Griffioen defeating Lucy Shuker 1-6 6-3 6-1 and Ohtani recovering to win 3-6 7-6(4) 6-1 against Zhu Zhenzhen. Dana Mathewson, however, enjoyed a comfortable win, overcoming Macarena Cabrillana 6-1 6-4 to advance.
The quad wheelchair event gets underway on Wednesday, while the top four seeds in the men’s and women’s wheelchair singles draws begin their campaigns too.