Reynolds, Watt beaten Roland Garros round one
- 2 hours ago
- 2 min read
The New Zealand pair of Finn Reynolds and James Watt have lost their first round match at Roland Garros the French Open, but were competitive all the way in their first Grand Slam appearance.
They were beaten by the higher-ranked and more experienced Czech pair of Adam Pavlasek and Patrik Rikl 6-7(4), 3-6 with the match tight in the first set where the New Zealanders had the advantage and will feel they could have closed it out.
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It was a special occasion for Reynolds, 26 and 25-year-old Watt, who made their Grand Slam debut with only a day's notice. As fifth alternatives for the tournament they needed four other combinations to withdraw to gain direct entry into the draw of 64.
Played on court 2 the kiwi duo were on court earlier than their opponents with temperatures already up to the high 20's.
They broke thei Czechs in the fourth game of the set with several blistering returns of serve, the first from Watt, followed by a down-the-line winner from Reynolds for a 3-1 lead in the set which they extended to 4-1 on Watt's service.
The set continued to 5-3 in favour of Reynolds and Watt, However the Czech pair played a strong ninth game with Watt and Reynolds saving two break points before they were eventually broken to reduce their lead to 5-4. The set then went to a tiebreak which they lost 4-7.
In the second set the Czech pair had the advantage of serving first, with games going with service until the sixth game when Watt and Reynolds were broken.
The New Zealand team were unable to break their opponents as the set continued with Pavlasek and Rikl winning the set 6-3 in an overall match time of one hour 21 minutes.