French Open first round continues with Gael Monfils headlining potential farewell

[p]Meanwhile, former champion [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/wawrinka-stan/Uo9lu6le/"]Stan Wawrinka[/a] and home favourite [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/monfils-gael/fm7G8o0m/"]Gael Monfils[/a] prepare to bid farewell to Roland Garros ahead of retirement.[/p][h2]TOP MEN'S MATCH: [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/tennis/gaston-h-hGqnSub7/monfils-g-fm7G8o0m/?mid=6ie1sxmC"]GASTON V MONFILS[/a][/h2][p]When two ‌Frenchmen walk into Court Philippe-Chatrier for the night session, local fans will witness a fascinating clash between one trying to make his mark ‌and another savouring his last appearance at Roland Garros.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/gaston-hugo/hGqnSub7/"]Hugo Gaston[/a], ranked outside the top 100, brings ‌his trademark bag of tricks to face one of France's most entertaining players of his generation in 39-year-old Monfils.[/p][p]The 25-year-old ‌Gaston may lack the ranking credentials, but his creativity, drop shots and variations have proven capable ‌of troubling higher-ranked opponents, particularly on his beloved claycourts.[/p][p]Across the net stands Monfils, no longer possessing the jaw-dropping athleticism of old but still carrying enough willpower to compete in his farewell tour to remain dangerous.[/p][p]The veteran, who has found peace with his retirement decision, ‌is embracing every moment of his final season and has not lost ⁠his competitive edge.[/p][p][b]"Since I have been able to voice my ‌desire to retire from tennis, and it was important to me, I have been feeling well,"[/b] Monfils said.[/p][p]"I feel immensely ​lucky to be able to say goodbye, to hit the balls with all the players, and to be able to compete on a few games with all those young players.[/p][p][b]"I'm a competitor, ​which is why I try to push myself in some of the games. But I'm really enjoying myself and I feel lucky that I'm able to be on tour one last season with great players."[/b][/p][embed guid="f5e3e28e-9a4f-43f9-8ddb-41bcb4ddd0db" url="https://x.com/rolandgarros/status/2058527052446241161" social-type="twitter" /][h2]TOP WOMEN'S ⁠MATCH: [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/tennis/jones-e-WCpmB755/swiatek-i-jNyZsXZe/?mid=CCOzVnth"]JONES V SWIATEK[/a][/h2][p]Former Roland Garros champion [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/swiatek-iga/jNyZsXZe/"]​Swiatek[/a] arrives at her favourite hunting ground in unfamiliar territory - ranked third in the world and without a claycourt title since her last triumph here in 2024.[/p][p]The Pole, who has never lost before the fourth round at Roland Garros, managed just one semi-final appearance on clay this season in Rome and admits she is taking a "humble" approach.[/p][p]Renowned ‌for her focus on the mental aspects of competitive sport, Swiatek's claycourt struggles have put her under intense scrutiny - a stark contrast to her dominant 2024 campaign when she felt liberated from external expectations.[/p][p][b]"Last year I felt like I needed to really work more in a tennis way than mental (aspects) on these tournaments, but I felt a lot of pressure, a lot. Everybody was just looking at my claycourt results and judging,"[/b] she said.[/p][p]"But in 2024, every day I just enjoyed. I really didn't feel any kind of pressure from the outside. Maybe I was really focused just on myself and I was really in the zone, in my own bubble, and went for it."[/p][p]Now Swiatek knows she must be "willing to fight for every match" as she navigates what ‌she acknowledges are ever-changing challenges.[/p][p][b]"Honestly, every year is different, no matter if you're dominating the court or not, ​there are different obstacles to face," [/b]she said.[/p][p]"So it's more I need to adjust to that ‌and not really the results or tennis itself."[/p][p]She faces Australian wildcard [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/jones-emerson/WCpmB755/"]Emerson Jones[/a] who is making her main draw debut at Roland Garros.[/p][h2]FRENCH OPEN ORDER OF PLAY ON MONDAY (prefix number denotes seeding):[/h2][p][b]COURT PHILIPPE-CHATRIER (play begins at 1000 GMT)[/b][/p][p]Emerson Jones (Australia) v 3-Iga Swiatek (Poland)[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/erjavec-veronika/rsErY1Yt/"]Veronika Erjavec[/a] (Slovenia) v 2-Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan)[/p][p]32-Ugo Humbert (France) v [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/mannarino-adrian/fLOdtByM/"]Adrian Mannarino[/a] (France)[/p][p]Hugo Gaston (France) v Gael Monfils (France)[/p][p][b]COURT SUZANNE LENGLEN (play begins at 0900 GMT)[/b][/p][p]22-Arthur Rinderknech (France) v [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/rodionov-jurij/CKjcTLz1/"]Jurij Rodionov[/a] (Austria)[/p][p]7-Elina Svitolina (Ukraine) v [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/bondar-anna/O8s9yjMD/"]Anna Bondar[/a] (Hungary)[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/rakotomanga-rajaonah-tiantsoa-sarah/pz7Viwx2/"]Tessah Rajaonah[/a] (France) v ⁠6-Amanda Anisimova (U.S.)[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/daniel-merida-aguilar/WOtXbAu5/"]Daniel Merida[/a] (Spain) v 5-Ben Shelton (U.S.)[/p][p][b]COURT SIMONNE MATHIEU (play begins ⁠at 0900 GMT)[/b][/p][p]13-Jasmine Paolini (Italy) v [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/yastremska-dayana/CWtkHlUE/"]Dayana Yastremska[/a] (Ukraine)[/p][p]Stan ‌Wawrinka (Switzerland) v [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/de-jong-jesper/8jStUWzB/"]Jesper De Jong[/a] (Netherlands)[/p][p]15-Casper Ruud (Norway) v [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/safiullin-roman/IBpggNog/"]Roman Safiullin[/a] (Russia)[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/zakharova-anastasia/pQGynuhR/"]Anastasia Zakharova[/a] (Russia) v 10-Karolina Muchova (Czech Republic)[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/tennis/wta-singles/french-open/"]Follow the French Open first round with Flashscore![/a][/b][/p]