French Open 2016 Results: Winners, Scores, Stats from Thursday's Singles Bracket
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal easily booked their spot in the third round of the 2016 French Open on Thursday, beating Steve Darcis and Facundo Bagnis in straight sets, respectively.
Borna Coric knocked out Bernard Tomic, while Tomas Berdych needed four sets to get past Malek Jaziri.
In the women's draw, Serena Williams wasted little time getting past Teliana Pereira, and Ana Ivanovic booked her spot in the next round by beating Kurumi Nara.
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Men's Results
| Borna Coric bt. Bernard Tomic (20) | 3-6, 6-2, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (8) |
| Tomas Berdych (7) bt. Malek Jaziri | 6-1, 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 |
| Rafael Nadal (4) bt. Facundo Bagnis | 6-3, 6-0, 6-3 |
| Novak Djokovic (1) bt. Steve Darcis (q) | 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 |
| Pablo Cuevas (25) bt. Quentin Halys (wc) | 7-6 (4), 6-3, 7-6 (6) |
| Dominic Thiem (13) bt. Guillermo Garcia | 7-5, 6-4, 7-6 (3) |
| Aljaz Bedene bt. Pablo Carreno | 7-6 (4), 6-3, 4-6, 5-7, 6-2 |
| Marcel Granollers bt. Nicolas Mahut | 6-3, 6-2, 1-0 |
| Ernests Gulbis bt. Joao Sousa (26) | 6-2, 7-5, 6-3 |
| David Goffin (12) bt. Carlos Berlocq | 7-5, 6-1, 6-4 |
| Roberto Bautista (14) bt. Paul-Henri Mathieu | 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-1 |
| Alexander Zverev bt. Stephane Robert (wc) | 6-1, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 |
| Nicolas Almagro bt. Jiri Vesely | 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 |
| Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (6) bt. Marcos Baghdatis | 6-7 (6), 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 |
| Feliciano Lopez (21) bt. Victor Estrella | 6-3, 7-6 (8), 6-3 |
| David Ferrer (11) bt. Juan Monaco | 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 |
Djokovic continued his strong run at Roland Garros with a straight-sets win over Darcis, although he didn't have it as easy as the final scores would suggest. The Serb dropped serve twice and was drawn into numerous long rallies by Darcis, a strong defender who usually does well on clay.
According to former professional tennis player Filip Dewulf, the world No. 1 praised his opponent after the contest for the tough challenge he gave him:
Djokovic is still hunting for his first-ever French Open title, the only Grand Slam he has never won, and with Nadal displaying some excellent form on clay of late, he'll have his work cut out for him.
He'll face Britain's Aljaz Bedene in the next round, and BreatheSport fears for the 26-year-old, who battled his way past Pablo Carreno Busta on Thursday:
"Britain's Bedene reaches 3rd round of a Grand Slam for the first time.
— BreatheSport (@BreatheSport) May 26, 2016"
He'll have to play Djokovic next... #RG16 pic.twitter.com/uU0jCgISAK
Nadal won his 200th Grand Slam match against Bagnis, despite losing the first two games of their contest. The Spaniard recovered to win the next 18 out of 22, dominating from the baseline and forcing plenty of errors.
Per MisterChip English, his Grand Slam win rate is impressive following his 200th win:
Berdych recovered from a blip in form in the second set to beat Jaziri, and Marcel Granollers cruised to a win over Nicolas Mahut. Tomic's tournament is over after he lost in four sets to Coric.
Women's Results
| Serena Williams (1) bt. Teliana Pereira | 6-2, 6-1 |
| Dominika Cibulkova (22) bt. Ana Konjuh | 6-4, 3-6, 6-0 |
| Carla Suarez Navarro (12) bt. Qiang Wang | 6-1, 6-3 |
| Timea Bacsinszky (8) bt. Eugenie Bouchard | 6-4, 6-4 |
| Kiki Bertens bt. Camila Giorgi | 6-4, 6-1 |
| Daria Kasatkina (29) bt. Virginie Razzano (wc) | 3-6, 6-1, 6-3 |
| Karin Knapp bt. Anastasija Sevastova | 6-3, 6-4 |
| Yulia Putintseva bt. Andrea Petkovic (28) | 6-2, 6-2 |
| Ana Ivanovic (14) bt. Kurumi Nara | 7-5, 6-1 |
| Pauline Parmentier bt. Irina Falconi | 6-3, 6-1 |
| Elina Svitolina (18) bt. Taylor Townsend (wc) | 6-3, 6-0 |
| Venus Williams (9) bt. Louisa Chirico (q) | 6-2, 6-1 |
| Madison Keys (15) bt. Mariana Duque-Marino | 6-3, 6-2 |
| Alize Cornet bt. Tatjana Maria | 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-4 |
| Kristina Mladenovic (26) bt. Timea Babos | 6-4, 6-3 |
| Monica Puig bt. Julia Goerges | 7-5, 6-7 (4), 7-5 |
Williams needed just 66 minutes to power her way past Pereira, dropping just three games on her way to the next round.
The world No. 1 has the chance to make history at Roland Garros, as a tournament win would be her 22nd Grand Slam title, tying Steffi Graf's Open-era record.
Per Bet365, her form has been excellent so far:
Carla Suarez Navarro is seen as one of the top contenders for the women's title, and the clay specialist impressed in her win over Qiang Wang. Like Williams, she needed less than 70 minutes to advance, dropping just four games.
Eugenie Bouchard lost in two sets to Timea Bacsinszky, while Ivanovic struggled in the first set of her win over Nara.
Venus Williams put together arguably the best performance of the day, racing to the finish line against Louisa Chirico. The 2002 finalist needed just 54 minutes to dispose of her compatriot, playing superb offensive tennis and dominating with power.
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