Early Exit from the French Open

Sebastian Ofner Eliminated in the First Round

Sebastian Ofner has to pack his bags early.(Bild: GEPA)

Following in the footsteps of Jurij Rodionov, Sebastian Ofner also fell short in his opening match at the French Open. And in a similar fashion—even with the exact same result. The Styrian held his own against the favored Luciano Darderi for one set, but lost it unluckily in the tiebreak. After that, the world No. 16 proved too strong, and Ofner lost 6-7(5), 2-6, 3-6.

Sebastian Ofner had actually braced himself for a long wait. The first match of the day on Court 7 between Anastasia Potapova’s boyfriend Tallon Griekspoor and Matteo Arnaldi dragged on for about four hours. Since two women’s matches were also scheduled before the Styrian’s, he could already expect to be called up around 8 p.m. But then the Kalinina–Parry match was moved to Center Court, where the schedule had been moving quickly, and Ofner was able to start against Luciano Darderi at 6 p.m.

(Bild: GEPA)

The 30-year-old was absolutely on par with the world No. 16, earning more break points but failing to convert his first six. Then, however, Ofner had a disastrous service game with two easy backhand errors and two double faults, falling behind 4-5, but immediately broke back thanks to his strong fighting spirit.

Luciano Darderi(Bild: AFP/DIMITAR DILKOFF)

Darderi’s frustration went unpunished
When Ofi also took the first point in the eleventh game, Darderi threw his racket and shouted angrily, “He always hits the line!” Shortly afterward, exasperated, he changed rackets, and Ofner held serve to love for a 6-5 lead. At that point, it felt as though the Austrian was the more composed player. But in a close tiebreak, it was Darderi who prevailed 7-5.

(Bild: GEPA)

With the set lead behind him, the favorite played visibly more relaxed, securing an early break to go up 2-0—but once again, Ofner was able to strike back immediately. After falling behind 2-4, the Styrian—who had received eye drops during the changeover due to problems with his contact lenses—was unable to do so, however; he first squandered a break point and then the chance for another with a slight forehand error.

Here are the match statistics for reference:

Now Ofner looked slightly dejected, while Darderi appeared rock-solid. The result was a quick 6-2 for the world No. 16. After which the Italian took a long bathroom break. That didn’t change much about his now-established dominance. Ultimately, the match became somewhat of a mirror image of Jurij Rodionov’s defeat against Arthur Rinderknech the day before. The Austrians held their own strongly for a set each, but then collapsed and their opponent pulled away.

“I let a few opportunities slip away”
“Unfortunately, Ilet a few opportunities slip away,”Ofner lamented, admitting that, especially in the heat, he no longer believed in a comeback after falling behind 0-2 in sets. “But my opponent is just in great form.” Most recently, Darderi had even reached the semifinals at the Rome Masters.

Ofner himself will drop out of the top 120 in the world rankings due to his first-round exit; after a short break, he’ll play the Challengers in Bratislava and Parma, followed by Wimbledon, where he’s still in the main draw based on his ranking at the time of entry. “It could be a tough road back into the top 100,” Ofi knows. “But if I play well, hopefully I’ll make it back quickly.”