Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Novak Djokovic showed signs of rust as he was forced to fight back from a set down to defeat world number 83 Giovanni Mpetschi Pericard in four sets in the first round of the French Open.
The third seed, who is bidding for a record 25th Grand Slam singles title, had only played 11 singles matches in 2026 before arriving in Paris, including his only loss on clay to Dino Prismic in three sets.
The 39-year-old was visibly frustrated in the first two sets as the 6ft 7in (2.01m) Frenchman squandered nine break points in the second before converting the first set 7-5 and later his fourth set point to battle against the Frenchman’s serve and ferocious forehand.
This proved the turning point of the match, before Djokovic wrapped up the third set in just 22 minutes to win 5-7 7-5 6-1 6-4.
He will face another home hope, Valentin Royer, in the second round on Wednesday.
More to follow.
