Paris – A German tennis trio will be challenged at the French Open in Paris on Wednesday. Alexander Zverev, Angelique Kerber and Andrea Petkovic – all three are aiming for the third round at the Stade Roland Garros. The matches of the three top German professionals at a glance:
Alexander Zverev (Hamburg) – Sebastian Baez (Argentina)
Zverev was not challenged at all in his opening match against the Austrian Sebastian Ofner. For the Olympic champion, the match against the qualifier was nothing more than a casual warm-up. Against Baez, Zverev should be challenged much more on Court Philippe Chatrier. Baez has recently shown strong performances on clay, which Zverev also felt at the tournament in Rome. His two-set win was hard-fought.
Angelique Kerber (Kiel) – Elsa Jacquemot (France)
Kerber will probably not forget her first round in Paris in a hurry. She was on the brink of elimination against Poland’s Magdalena Frech, but, spurred on by the crowd, fought off two match points and managed to turn things around. Against Jacquemot, Kerber will be much less challenged. The 19-year-old Frenchwoman is only in the main draw thanks to a wildcard. Even after that, the draw looks good for Kerber, who still lacks Paris as her only Grand Slam title.
Viktoria Asarenka (Belarus) – Andrea Petkovic (Darmstadt)
Petkovic’s first appearance was convincing. The German number two looks fit and is in the mood for tennis in Paris. In this condition, Petkovic is also in with a chance against the former world number one. Especially since Asarenka has had a mixed clay-court season so far. However, her record speaks against Petkovic, who has only won one of her four matches. Nevertheless, she can be expected to spring a surprise in Paris.
