Andre Agassi's former coach Brad Gilbert shared his thoughts on Rafael Nadal drawing Alexander Zverev in the first round at the 2024 French Open. In other news, Danielle Collins dodged the interviewer’s repeated attempts to make her speak French in a hilarious on-court interview at the Internationaux de Strasbourg.
Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic received a special birthday cake at the Geneva Open on his 37th birthday following his second-round victory against Yannick Hanfmann. Jessica Pegula took a swipe at Jelena Ostapenko for her Hawkeye call disputes.
On that note, here's a recap of today's top tennis news:
Andre Agassi's ex-coach shares insights on Rafael Nadal vs. Alexander Zverev matchup in French Open 1R
Brad Gilbert, who used to coach Andre Agassi and now works with Coco Gauff, said that Rafael Nadal’s unseeded status caused him to face Alexander Zverev in the opening round of the 2024 French Open.
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Gilbert posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account that an unseeded player had no control over who they would meet in the first round out of the 127 other players.
"If you are not seeded you can play anyone of the other 127 players in the draw 1st rd, the tournament could have chosen to seed Vamos-Rafa [Rafael Nadal] but hardly ever change the seeds here to my knowledge, this is how a random draw comes out for better or worse," Gilbert wrote on X.
Nadal and Zverev will meet for the 11th time on the ATP tour, with the former having a 7-3 head-to-head record against the latter. This will be the rematch of the 2022 French Open semifinal, where Nadal was granted a walkover victory due to Zverev's retirement in the third set because of an ankle injury.
Rafael Nadal then went on to defeat eighth seed Casper Ruud 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 in the final.
Danielle Collins dodges interviewer’s request to speak French in a hilarious on-court interview
Danielle Collins was reluctant to showcase her French-speaking ability despite multiple prompts from her interviewer at the 2024 Internationaux de Strasbourg.
Following her 6-1, 6-2 win over Katerina Siniakova in the second round, Collins was asked to address the crowd in French during the on-court interview. Initially, she agreed hesitantly but then humorously called out the interviewer for putting her on the spot, even rolling her eyes. The interviewer, recognizing her discomfort, decided to let it go.
"Okay. Yeah. Let’s go," she said with a hesitant smile.
"Yeah. Put me on the spot, but okay," she added.
Watch the video here (0:40):
Third-seed Danielle Collins went on to defeat Clara Burel 6-1, 6-3 in the last eight to advance to the semifinals, where she will face either top seed Marketa Vondrousova or Anhelina Kalinina.
Novak Djokovic surprised with a special cake for his 37th birthday at the Geneva Open
Novak Djokovic celebrated his 37th birthday with a special cake following a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Yannick Hanfmann in the second round at the 2024 Geneva Open.
Following the match, the tournament organizers surprised the Serb with a cake on the court. Djokovic was delighted by the gesture and shared the cake with the ball kids and others on the court.
Watch the video video:
Novak Djokovic clinched a 7-5, 6-1 victory over sixth seed Tallon Griekspoor in the quarterfinals. The Serb will now face Tomas Machac in the semifinals.
Jessica Pegula throws shade at Jelena Ostapenko over Hawkeye call predictions
Jessica Pegula took a dig at Jelena Ostapenko during a Tennis Channel segment where players predicted past Hawkeye calls.
Pegula made a sarcastic remark about Ostapenko after watching a video from Coco Gauff's match with the latter. In the video, the Latvian’s backhand landed out and she can be seen arguing against the electronic line calling.
"I mean, I don’t know, in? Although it’s Ostapenko, she always thinks it’s out," Jessica Pegula stated.
Jessica Pegula, who was last seen competing at the Billie Jean King Cup Qualifiers, recently withdrew from the French Open due to injury. Jelena Ostapenko, on the other hand, will be going against Jaqueline Cristian in the first round of the French Open.
What is the foot injury that has troubled Rafael Nadal over the years? Check here
