Rafael Jodar lived up to his reputation as one of the rising stars of the men’s game by producing a comprehensive win in his opening match at the French Open on Monday.
Making his main draw debut at Roland Garros, the Spaniard dropped only five games during his 6-1, 6-0, 6-4 thrashing of world No.67 Aleksandar Kovacevic. Jodar won 81% of his first service points and hit 27 winners to claim only his second win at a Grand Slam tournament in his professional career.
2026 has been a breakthrough season for the 19-year-old, who was outside the world’s top 160 in January. Since then, he won his first ATP title in Marrakech, reached the semi-finals of a 500 event in Barcelona and produced back-to-back quarter-final runs at two Masters 1000 tournaments. He is now ranked 29th in the world.
“I think I did things very well from the start and I’m super happy to get my first win in Paris,” said Jodar.
“It was special to see many people cheering for me at every point. It was great. I feel that support and I’m very grateful for all the people who are supporting me during this process.” He added.
Despite his inexperience, Jodar has a strong chance of reaching the quarter-finals in Paris with his draw rapidly opening up. In his section, the only other seed to get beyond the first round is his compatriot Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, a former quarter-finalist in 2021. Taylor Fritz and Jiri Lehecka have both been knocked out.
Roland Garros could be the event where Jodar bursts into the limelight. However, the youngster stresses he is in no hurry to rise to the top and admits there is still plenty of room for improvement in his game. He is coached by his father, Rafael Jódar Sr.
“I’m not in a rush at all. I think I still have to learn a lot of things on the Tour,” he said.
“It’s just my first year and I’m experiencing a lot of things in the past few months.
“But I think these experiences are really helping me to develop as a player and as a person because I’m learning a lot when I’m playing tournaments and when I’m preparing for the matches.
“It’s good to have that feeling to be able to compete in the French Open and in all these tournaments.”
Jodar, who was ranked 707th in the world this time last year, will play James Duckworth in the next round.
