Novak Djokovic has made a winning start in his 21st appearance at the French Open.
Djokovic won the Geneva Open last week, finding some much-needed confidence on clay before lifting his 100th ATP title.
This was the first tournament for Djokovic since splitting from Andy Murray, with the Serbian claiming the decision to part ways was mutual.
Despite finding some form heading into the French Open, Tim Henman admitted he had questions over Djokovic and now Andre Agassi has followed suit.
Andre Agassi has one doubt about Novak Djokovic at the French Open
Djokovic won his first round match at the French Open against American Mackenzie McDonald, 6-3 6-3 6-3.
This has continued the 38-year-old’s streak of never losing in the first round of the Paris major.
When discussing Djokovic’s chances at the French Open and future in the sport, former world number one Agassi had some questions about the 24-time Grand Slam champion.
Agassi, who actually coached Djokovic for a short period in 2017 and 2018, suggested that his former player could find it difficult to replicate the same feelings on the same court that he won Olympic gold last year.
The American also claimed that Djokovic’s former rivals Roger Federer, Murray and Rafael Nadal retiring is likely to be having an impact on him.
“Nobody has come close on paper to what he has done in tennis,” Agassi said on TNT Sports. “I can only imagine the challenges going through Novak’s mind, as in relates to already securing his place in history and his greatest rivals no longer being there.
“When Pete [Sampras] retired it left a sneaky mark on me. In some respects I knew I would win on more Sundays but in another respect I lost a little piece of something that I didn’t realise. It is going to be hard not leading the dance with the people you came to the dance with.
“This is the interesting part at this age too with Novak is the body. You can’t play too much but you can’t afford to underplay either because there is nothing like replicating the match time and the fatigue which comes with it.
“Now to go out and there and play three out of five over the course of two weeks against a lot of guys who actually are starting to believe, not that they can beat him, but maybe they should beat him. The difficulty of getting past that finish line is exponential.
“He will have to work hard to find that trigger that will bring out what makes him the best of himself. And then I also wonder how much being in the same place as what allowed him to probably have his greatest moment on a tennis court – which is winning that gold medal last year at Roland Garros – it makes me wonder what that will do to him emotionally. Will that take the edge off of him or give him a fight that he needs?
“I made the decision at Wimbledon that I was going to end at the US Open, just two short months later. But I knew it needed to end there. I had to trust my heart in that.
“I don’t know how Novak is going to choose to end but what I can tell you is that he deserves it to be on his terms and it should be celebrated for exactly that.”
Novak Djokovic vs Corentin Moutet Head-to-head
Next up for Djokovic is charismatic Frenchman Corentin Moutet, who beat his compatriot Clement Tabur in his first round match.
This will be a third career meeting between Djokovic and Moutet, with the former leading the head-to-head 2-0.
Their first ever match came on the indoor hard courts of Paris in 2019, while their most recent feels more like an indicator into how this upcoming match may go.
Last year, Djokovic beat Moutet in straight sets on the clay courts of Rome, and lost just four games in the process.
However, Moutet is likely to have the majority of the support from his home crowd against Djokovic in a match that is likely to be scheduled on Court Philippe-Chatrier on Thursday May 29.
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