#NextGenATP star drops just five games in first-round rout

Rafael Jodar continued his European breakout surge in emphatic fashion on Monday, when he delivered an eye-catching statement on his debut at Roland Garros.

The 19-year-old Spaniard brushed aside Aleksandar Kovacevic 6-1, 6-0, 6-4 in a commanding one-hour, 34-minute first-round performance. Seeded at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in his fledgling career, Jodar arrived in Paris riding a wave of confidence after a standout clay season, and he immediately showed why.

With his opening victory, the #NextGenATP star improved to 16-3 on clay in 2026, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. His breakthrough campaign has already featured a maiden tour-level title in Marrakech and consecutive quarter-final appearances in Madrid and Rome.

“The first matches are always difficult in a tournament,” Jodar, the 27th seed, said. “I had to serve very well. I tried to play my game during the first two sets, and even when things got a little bit more difficult for me in the third set, I think I played those points especially very well, playing my game.”

Jodar began the season as the World No. 168 but has since soared to a career-high No. 29 in the PIF ATP Rankings, and the Spaniard has a chance to continue climbing during his debut run in Paris. Next up in the French capital, Jodar will meet James Duckworth, who led Gabriel Diallo 6-1, 4-1 when the Canadian retired.

Kovacevic entered Monday’s contest with momentum of his own after reaching the semi-finals in Hamburg as a lucky loser last week. But in the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting, the American found few answers against Jodar’s relentless aggression.

Elsewhere in the bottom half of the draw, Jodar’s countryman Pablo Carreno Busta also advanced with a 6-3, 7-6(3), 6-3 upset over 12th seed Jiri Lehecka. Jodar’s potentially third-round opponent, Alex Michelsen, progressed with a 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Aleksandr Shevchenko to set a meeting with wild card Nishesh Basavareddy, who stunned seventh seed Taylor Fritz on Sunday.