Stan Wawrinka rolled back the years last night, as he dispatched Andy Murray with ease to cruise into the Roland Garros second round.
It was a battle of the legends on Philippe-Chatrier, which saw the 39-year-old face the 37-year-old in what could well be the last time the two ever meet on court.
And despite the fanfare, it was so comfortable for the Swiss superstar, who capped off a stunning day of action that saw the full French Open draw significantly culled.
However, there really is never any rest for those in this gruelling sport, and the action continues here today all over again on day two of Roland Garros.
But that has not stopped Wawrinka from airing his grievances about what happened in the crowd during his match last night.
Stan Wawrinka reacts to Roland Garros crowd
Taking to X at around 1 am, this was clearly something which had the superb veteran tossing and turning.
Although he was likely just up late trawling through the endless media duties of a tennis player, he still found the time to comb through the social media app and stumbled upon a couple of tweets from journalist Stuart Fraser.
His first read: ‘Andy Murray a set and a break down to Stan Wawrinka in the first night session match of this year’s French Open. Bad look for the tournament to have such a large number of empty seats in the VIP area at the far side behind the baseline. The top tier is just about full.’
Then, after the match, that same reporter relayed comments from Wawrinka himself: ‘It did not go unnoticed on the court. Wawrinka: “I think in general it was quite full, the stadium. Not the presidential [area], but the stadium, yes.”’
And now, the three-time Grand Slam champion has reaffirmed that with a simple reply: ‘Yes,’ he wrote, accompanied by a facepalm emoji. Not a happy man.
Andy Murray just didn’t have enough for Stan Wawrinka
Despite all the acclaim leading up to this clash, it ultimately ended with a whimper, as Andy Murray could not lay a glove on Wawrinka, losing 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.
However, this was always to be expected, if either player was to enjoy a comfortable victory.
After all, it is hard to remember the last time the Scotsman eased through a match, with every single second on court since his return from injury seemingly a battle.
And then, even when combing through the archives, Wawrinka was always the favoured player on this surface and at this competition, even before enjoying what he described as ‘my best match of the year’.
Especially given he is the only man outside of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic to have won the tournament since 2004.
A truly legendary figure of the sport who was especially thwarted by this trio, it will be interesting to see what damage he might do against a younger opponent given how imperious he was against Murray.
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