WALTON’S MAIDEN PARIS VICTORY HEADLINES AUSSIE ACTION ON TUESDAY

Two of our best-performing Australian men in 2025 again led the way on Tuesday at Roland Garros, with Adam Walton and Alex de Minaur each advancing to the second round.

Walton earned a significant breakthrough, recording his first victory on the Parisian clay after a near-five-hour match with German Maximilian Marterer; one made even sweeter after losing five-setters at both the Australian Open (2025) and Wimbledon (2024).

“I definitely had thoughts going through my head when I lost the fourth, knowing that I'd lost my previous two five-set matches. But I just told myself to go for it in the fifth, and luckily, I got off to a good start and managed to keep the momentum on my side,” Walton told The First Serve post-match.

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Walton, who had not played a clay lead-in event after opting to play the Asian ATP Challenger swing on hard courts, revealed that the decision was made before his strong golden swing.

“We locked in the Asian schedule early. I did maybe better than expected in Indian Wells and Miami, but we stuck with the original plan,” the 26-year-old said.

And despite no red clay preparation this year, and having played just five tour-level matches on the surface, he’s beginning to feel more comfortable.

“I’ve got a high shot tolerance, which helps on clay, but movement is the big thing — being set for each ball is harder than on hard court. I think with more exposure I can get better, for sure,” Walton explained.

"Compared to 12 months ago, I’m definitely more comfortable.”

Walton will now face 17th seed Andrey Rublev on Thursday (his biggest Grand Slam match to date), seeking to win a set against a top-50 player for the first time, after seven previous attempts.

"It’ll be a good opportunity. He’s an aggressive hitter, I’ll do everything I can to be as physically fit as possible. Looking forward to battling with him."

Earlier on Tuesday, Alex de Minaur faced a tricky challenge against Serbian Laslo Djere, who enjoys the clay and was coming off a third-round berth in Rome.

But as we’ve come to expect, ‘Demon’ was clinical from the outset, finding breaks of serve in the opening two sets before stealing a tight third set tiebreak.

“A first-round match was never going to be easy. I managed to sneak through in three. It wasn't pretty, but ultimately got the win, and that's all that matters,” de Minaur said post-match.

The Australian No.1, who made it 19 straight victories against unseeded players at major, spoke about the evolution of his game on clay, now feeling more comfortable in exchanges on the red dirt.

“Over the years on the clay I definitely felt it was very easy for opponents to out-power me...but thanks to getting five or six kilos more, it’s definitely helped me hold my own on this surface,” de Minaur revealed.

But if he could steal one shot from an opponent on the clay, it’d be “a heavier forehand. I would say maybe a Casper Ruud, or Carlos Alcaraz-type forehand where you can really get those revolutions, feel that weight of ball without feeling like you're going to miss.”

De Minaur will now face the unpredictable Alexander Bublik, over whom he holds a 3-0 head-to-head record.

“He’s going to be extremely dangerous...he takes the racquet out of your hands, it’s going to be tough.”

Elsewhere on Monday in Paris, James Duckworth was defeated by Alexander Bublik, whilst Olivia Gadecki went down to Coco Gauff.

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