Reem's Roland Garros round-up - Day Three

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  • Ready for another day: People walk around the village ahead of the day's play.

    Sport360°'s tennis expert Reem Abulleil is in Paris for the 2014 French Open and will be providing regular updates throughout the tournament on this 'Live at Roland Garros' page.

    So for all the latest breaking news, photos, social media activity, and everything else Roland Garros-related, this is the place to be… (timings below are Paris local time, two hours behind UAE time)

    21:33 Play called on Court 7 due to darkness with Steve Johnson leading French qualifier Laurent Lokoli 4-6, 6-7 (7), 7-6 (3), 6-3, 3-1. How that match ran away from Lokoli I'll never know. Tough lesson for the 19-year-old.

    19:40 Asked how he rates Dominic Thiem's chances against Rafa, Murray says smiling: "I don't know. I'd bet on Rafa!"

    19:20 Marinko Matosevic celebrates winning his first ever main draw Grand Slam match after losing in the first round in 12 straight first rounds in majors… in a very unusual way. Made Andy Murray, his next opponent chuckle!

    18:53 Dustin Brown found a second gear apparently after going two sets down to Matosevic. The German took the third set tiebreak and is up a break in the fourth. He's actually played only one five-setter in his career, and he lost it. He'll have to win in five if he wants to set up a second round with Andy Murray.

    18:50 Sloane Stephens tells us about the struggles of her new coaching partnership with Paul Annacone. Apparently he doesn't know how to use wifi on his phone. Tragic stuff!

    17:00 2008 champion Ana Ivanovic, who breezed past Caroline Garcia, said she can relate to the situation Stan Wawrinka is in: "All of a sudden a lot of people put pressures, and also outside and also probably from himself. Everyone was probably talking about his match in the semi-final rather than his match in the first round. It's sometimes hard to deal with, especially when it's new."

    14:18 Li Na clearly upset. Says it's a bigger issue than just having a bad day in the office.

    I talked to the ATP/WTA people here and they said both Australian Open champions losing in the subsequent Roland Garros first round has NEVER happened before. Not the record Stan and Li Na would have wanted but hey… they're still in the history books!

    13:15 Biggest upset in the women's draw so far. 2011 champion Li Na crashes out to French world No103 Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 3-6, 6-1. BOTH Australian Open champions crash out of the first round of the subsequent Slam. When was the last time that happened? A bunch of French players and coaches include Alize Cornet were huddled in the Players' Lounge TV screens to witness Kiki's big moment. Huge stuff from the 21-year-old.

    Meanwhile, Grigor Dimitrov could not even muster a set against 35-year-old Ivo Karlovic. The No11 seed loses 4, 5, and 6.

    ** No rain but it's a bit chilly. Still a festive atmosphere around the grounds of Roland Garros.

    **Meanwhile, Kuznetsova shoots up to the top of the list of worst outfits in Paris this fortnight. Would like to give her a pass though considering how badass she is and how awesome she usually plays at Roland Garros.

    11:58 Li Na went down an early break against Mladenovic, who is doing great so far and has Amelie Mauresmo in her corner. But the Chinese broke back and just squandered two set points with Kiki serving at 4-5. Ivo Karlovic took the first set off Grigor Dimitrov.

    11:15 Petra Kvitova spotted outside the premises going for a run in the surrounding streets with a member of her team. Somehow she goes by unnoticed by the scores trying to get into the stadium.

    10:55 – Good morning from Paris! After a rain-affected second day, we're hopeful of better conditions today. The forecast is predicting a cloudy day with the possibility of rain showers in the late-afternoon. But there should be plenty of on-court action to enjoy! 

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