French Open 2026 Day Two Recap

Day Two at Roland Garros brought a blend of strong favourites advancing, five-set battles, and significant emotional moments on the clay.

Most notably, it marked the likely final Roland Garros appearances for two French favourites: Gael Monfils and Stan Wawrinka.

The 41-year-old Wawrinka was given a warm, heartfelt send-off by the Parisian crowd after his first-round defeat, while Monfils also bowed out in the first round to Hugo Gaston in another five-setter.

On the competitive side, No. 5 seed Ben Shelton impressed in straight sets, Casper Ruud battled through a tough five-setter, and 19-year-old Rafael Jodar turned heads with a dominant debut win.

Here’s a closer look at the key matches from Day Two.

Day Two French Open 2026 Round of 128 Results

Winner	Loser	Score
Arthur Rinderknech (22)	Jurij Rodionov (Q)	7-6(5) 6-2 6-3
Matteo Berrettini	Marton Fucsovics	6-7(2) 7-5 6-1 6-2
Hubert Hurkacz	Jaume Munar	6-3 6-3 2-6 6-3
Frances Tiafoe (19)	Eliot Spizzirri	6-3 6-7(5) 6-4 6-3
Raphael Collignon	Aleksandar Vukic	6-3 6-3 7-6(4)
Ben Shelton (5)	Daniel Merida	6-3 6-3 6-4
Ugo Humbert (32)	Adrian Mannarino	6-3 6-4 6-3
Hugo Gaston (WC)	Gael Monfils (WC)	6-2 6-3 3-6 2-6 6-0
Luca Van Assche	Vilius Gaubas	6-4 6-2 2-6 7-5
Brandon Nakashima (31)	Roberto Bautista Agut	6-2 7-5 6-2
Francisco Cerundolo (25)	Botic Van De Zandschulp	6-3 6-4 6-7(9) 6-4
Wu Yibing	Marcos Giron	7-5 6-2 6-4
Flavio Cobolli (10)	Andrea Pellegrino (Q)	6-4 7-6(4) 6-3
Camilo Ugo Carabelli	Emilio Nava (Q)	7-6(10) 6-3 6-3
Mariano Navone	Jenson Brooksby	6-4 6-4 6-4
Alex De Minaur (8)	Toby Samuel (Q)	6-4 6-4 6-2
Casper Ruud (15)	Roman Safiullin (Q)	6-2 7-6(5) 5-7 0-6 6-2
Tommy Paul (24)	Rinky Hijikata	4-6 6-3 7-5 6-4
Andrey Rublev (11)	Ignacio Buse	6-3 6-7(6) 6-3 7-5
Rafael Jodar (27)	Aleksandar Kovacevic	6-1 6-0 6-4
Alex Michelsen	Alexander Shevchenko	6-2 6-4 6-2
Thanasi Kokkinakis	Terence Atmane	6-7(5) 6-2 4-6 6-3 7-5
Pablo Carreno Busta	Jiri Lehecka (12)	6-3 7-6(3) 6-3

Key Matches

Ben Shelton def. Daniel Merida 6-3 6-3 6-4

World No. 5 Ben Shelton made a strong statement in his opening match, dispatching Spain’s Daniel Merida in straight sets with a polished and powerful performance.

Shelton, who came into Paris with a modest 1-3 clay record since winning Munich, unleashed 35 winners and dominated behind his big serve (winning 86% of first-serve points). The American looked comfortable on Court Suzanne Lenglen, and he will be hoping to improve on his 4th-round appearance last year.

His next opponent will be Belgium’s Raphael Collignon, who also advanced comfortably, which could be an interesting one.

Casper Ruud def. Roman Safiullin 6-2 7-6(5) 5-7 0-6 6-2

Casper Ruud survived a rollercoaster five-set battle that lasted nearly four hours, overcoming physical struggles in the Paris heat to defeat qualifier Roman Safiullin.

The Norwegian raced through the first two sets but then squandered five match points in the third, before collapsing physically in the fourth (losing it 0-6). He admitted to feeling dizzy and “horrible” but showed great mental resilience, regrouping and dominating the decider.

As a two-time former finalist, Ruud knows how to grind at Roland Garros and I like the fact he’s not a player who retires at the drop of a hat. He will next face Hamad Medjedovic, and he will need to recover quickly for that one.

Rafael Jodar def. Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-1 6-0 6-4

19-year-old Rafael Jodar delivered one of the most impressive performances of the day in his Roland Garros debut, dismantling Aleksandar Kovacevic in just 94 minutes.

The Spaniard dropped only five games in a display of relentless aggression and confidence, underlining why he has surged into the top 30 this season with strong results in Marrakech, Madrid, and Rome.

Jodar improved to 16-3 on clay in 2026, and he’s arguably the most dangerous young player in the draw.

Thanasi Kokkinakis def. Terence Atmane 6-7(5) 6-2 4-6 6-3 7-5

Thanasi Kokkinakis (ranked World No. 855) battled back from a break down in the fifth set to defeat home favourite Terence Atmane in a gruelling four-hour, 18-minute epic.

Kokkinakis is a bit of a forgotten man, having had so many injuries, including major pectoral surgery, and this was only his third tournament back.

The Australian always shows tremendous heart but is usually on the receiving end of tough losses (see his match vs Murray in Australia), but his efforts were rewarded here, breaking Atmane when the Frenchman served for the match at 5-4 in the decider. He will now face Pablo Carreno Busta.

Pablo Carreno Busta def. Jiri Lehecka 6-3 7-6(3) 6-3

Experienced Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta produced an excellent straight-sets upset over No. 12 seed Jiri Lehecka.

I didn’t see this one coming at all, but Carreno Busta looked sharp and controlled throughout, using his clay-court nous to neutralise the Czech’s power.

I’ve said it a few times before: PCB looked like the heir to Nadal’s clay-court dominance when he first broke through on tour, but he never quite found that level. However, he’s still more than capable, as we saw today.

Highlights

French Open 2026 Day 3 Round of 128 Matches