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'It's nice to be an outsider': Roger Federer relaxed about French Open chances after first-round cruise on Roland Garros return

Federer showed little ring-rust on the Roland Garros clay as he cruised past Lorenzo Sonego in 101 minutes - REUTERS
Federer showed little ring-rust on the Roland Garros clay as he cruised past Lorenzo Sonego in 101 minutes - REUTERS

Retour Sur Terre – or Back To Earth – was the headline on the Roland Garros programme on Sunday. It saluted Roger Federer’s first appearance on the French Open’s crushed brick, known to the locals as terre battue, since he lost to Stan Wawrinka here in the 2015 quarter-final.

To watch Federer on Sunday, though, was to acknowledge that his extra-terrestrial gifts remain intact. He seemed to float above the court as he eliminated Lorenzo Sonego in only 101 minutes: 6-2, 6-4, 6-4. Federer doesn’t see himself as a leading contender for this title, he said afterwards. But we can be confident that no-one is looking forward to facing him.

“It's nice to be an outsider,” Federer said. “It relaxes you on the bigger points maybe, or it relaxes you subconsciously as you walk through the grounds and go to practice and go to the press room.

“This is not a show I'm putting on,” Federer added. “This is the truth. I really don't know how far I can go in this event, and I am very happy with my first round. It was a really good performance, I thought, from my side for not having played here for as long as I did.”

Four years is a long time in tennis – especially at a venue where several stadia have been either demolished or renovated since Federer’s last visit. But there was no sense of a settling-in period; quite the reverse, in fact, as he broke serve twice in the first 12 minutes to rush out to a 3-0 lead.

Federer salutes the crowd after his straight-sets win in the first round - Credit: AFP
Federer salutes the crowd after his straight-sets win in the first round Credit: AFP

Sonego is an earnest Italian with a hint of a young Rafael Nadal about him. He has a bandanna to hold back his floppy black hair, a chesty grunt and a lassoo forehand. Only the right-handedness and the skinny build spoiled the comparison – along with the one-sidedness of the scoreline.

Despite competing hard in sets two and three, Sonego was left bemused by Federer’s variety of spins and angles. He also had to put up with the indignity of a winning drop shot played against his serve.

Just entering and exiting the new-look Court Philippe Chatrier must have felt like a tonic for Federer, who received celebratory chants and a standing ovation both times.

He arrived clad entirely in white, as if he had taken a wrong turn on the way to Wimbledon, before disrobing to reveal the Uniqlo kit that has been compared to a parcel delivery uniform. It takes a special clotheshorse to make beige look bold, but he just about pulled it off.

“I feel that the public missed me, and I missed them, as well,” said Federer after the match. “After not playing here for many years, there was some buzz, which I could feel on the central court when I was training and when I was playing today. “So it was rather cool, rather pleasant, and I really loved the welcome I got on the court. I hope that it continues like this.”

Angelique Kerber was among the high-profile exits on day one at Roland Garros - Credit: GETTY IMAGES
Angelique Kerber was among the high-profile exits on day one at Roland Garros Credit: GETTY IMAGES

Federer’s reappearance helped lift the French Open’s Sunday start, which is often a rather drab affair. Most of the leading players want to squeeze out extra training before entering the fray over the first two days of this week.

If Federer proved to be the exception, one suspects that he has hatched a cunning plan. Given the extra physicality of clay-court tennis, recovery may prove to be a bigger challenge for him this fortnight than outright performance. And as he mentioned last night, his early arrival meant that he wouldn’t have to play again for two-and-a-half days.

In the other matches, the new Court Simonne-Mathieu – which is surrounded by four spectacular greenhouses – was inaugurated by former Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza, who beat Taylor Townsend of the USA in three sets.

But the reigning Wimbledon champion Angelique Kerber was among the first fallers, going down in straight sets to Russia’s Anastasia Potapova. Afterwards, Kerber said that the result had not been much of a surprise in view of her fractured clay-court build-up, which included a withdrawal from Madrid at the start of this month because of an ongoing ankle injury.

“Of course I'm disappointed,” Kerber said, “but I tried everything the last two weeks to be here. At the end, I didn't have matches before [and] I couldn't practise very good. So I really don't have too much expectation.”