Jodar Makes Dominant Roland Garros Debut
Anotida
Teenage Spaniard Rafael Jodar continued his impressive rise on clay after a commanding straight-sets victory over Aleksandar Kovacevic in the opening round of Roland Garros on Monday.
The 19-year-old defeated Kovacevic 6-1, 6-0, 6-4 in just one hour and 34 minutes to secure his first main-draw win in Paris.
Jodar, seeded 27th for the tournament, controlled the match from the opening set with aggressive baseline play and strong serving.
Speaking after the match, Jodar admitted opening-round matches can be challenging despite his dominant performance. The first matches are always difficult in a tournament,he said. “I had to serve very well. I tried to play my game during the first two sets, and even when things got a little bit more difficult for me in the third set, I think I played those points especially very well.”
The victory improves Jodar’s clay-court record this season to 16 wins and three defeats. His strong 2026 campaign has already included his maiden ATP Tour title in Marrakech, along with quarter-final appearances in Madrid and Rome.
Jodar began the year ranked World No. 168 but has climbed to a career-high No. 29 in the PIF ATP Rankings following a breakthrough season.
He will next face James Duckworth in the second round after the Australian advanced when Gabriel Diallo retired during their match.
Kovacevic came into the encounter with confidence after reaching the semi-finals in Hamburg last week as a lucky loser. However, the American struggled to contain Jodar in their first ATP Tour meeting.
Elsewhere, fellow Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta produced an upset by defeating 12th seed Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 7-6(3), 6-3.
Meanwhile, Alex Michelsen progressed with a straight-sets win over Aleksandr Shevchenko and will now meet wildcard Nishesh Basavareddy, who stunned seventh seed Taylor Fritz on Sunday.
