For their first steps in the big leagues at Roland-Garros, the French hopefuls Luca Van Assche and Arthur Fils had opposite fates this Monday, May 29: the first obtained his first Grand Slam victory, not the second.
Van Assche yes, Son no. On court N.14, that of the beautiful stories of Lucas Pouille and Fiona Ferro since the qualifications of this 2023 edition, Luca Van Assche, 19 years old since the beginning of May and entered the top 100 at the beginning of April, offered his very first Grand Slam victory at the expense of the Italian Marco Cecchinato (72nd), dominated 6-1, 6-1, 6-3 in less than two hours. “ And 1, and 2, and 3, zero “, intoned the public present in number, to celebrate its success in three sets.
” I came back a little stressed, but I started very well. It was super cool to play in front of them. From the start, I felt comfortable. Little by little, I managed to free myself and I had a very good match. I remained calm and serene from beginning to end, says Luca Van Assche. I hope to go much further. »
Arthur Fils (63rd), the other French hopeful born in 2004, freshly won his first tournament on the ATP circuit in Lyon on Saturday, did not experience the same success: despite a good resistance after a start more than delicate, he lost 6-1, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 against the Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich, 34th in the world, on the Simonne-Mathieu court. What if Van Assche avenged him? It is now he who will tackle Davidovich in the second round.
If both appear for the first time in the main draw, Van Assche as Son are not quite newcomers to Roland-Garros, since the first had won the junior tournament in 2021 at the expense of the second.