French Open Day 1 recap – Murray beaten by Wawrinka after wins for Alcaraz and Osaka

That’s it for our coverage of Day 1 at the 2024 French Open.

Jannik Sinner, Coco Gauff and Stefanos Tsitsipas will also be appearing in their first-round ties.

It’s not to be missed, so we’ll see you again then – Good night!

Wawrinka comes out firmly on top in the battle of veteran former Grand Slam champions.

The Swiss’ clay-court game was once again too good for the former World No.1 as he served out a straight sets win to 15 in two hours and 19 minutes, finishing it off with a trademark backhand down the line.

It was also great to see an absolutely brilliant reaction between the two at the net. Such respect in what could be Murray’s final RG appearance. Pure class.

Murray avoids the breadstick with a game to 15 as Stan almost gives up on the return.

The 2015 champion will now serve for the match and another win over Murray on clay.

Wawrinka gives Muzza a smidgen of hope with a double fault for deuce – but then snatches it away with a clutch wide serve and a wrong-footing forehand winner.

The Swiss is now one game away from round two.

Murray benefits from some loose returns to belatedly get on the board and avoid a real humbling in this third set.

The crowd offer warm applause but he won’t be too fond of that. He will wanted to be more competitive just like he was in the first two sets.

Murray’s resistance and spirit looks broken right now.

He drills a tame backhand straight into the net and then watches in dismay as another ace flies past him. It’s a love hold and Stan the Man consolidates his double break.

What looks like being Andy Murray’s RG farewell could be ending on a low note.

Murray almost falls over trying to adjust to attack a Wawrinka backhand drilled near to his feet. It’s a comedy shimmy but there’s nothing funny about it for the Scot.

It sees him fall triple break point down and although a crisp ace down the T fends off one, he butchers a close-range forehand into the net on the second after wonderful defence from Stan.

Stan loses focus at 30-0 but comes up trumps in an exchange of angled drop-shots at 30-30 to regain the initiative.

A one-two punch is then like a dagger to Murray’s heart as the Swiss veteran consolidates.

Wawrinka adds a couple more to his show reel with a rasping crosscourt return winner and a belter of a backhand up the line to conjure up break point.

Murray thinks he has control in the ensuing point but Stan stoops low way to his left and drills another beauty of a backhand down the line to secure an instant break at the start of Set 3.

Murray threatens the break back when a sublime crosscourt backhand pass on the run is followed by a Stan forehand long.

The Swiss retorts with a clutch serve and a big, big forehand before Muzza slaps a make-able forehand into the net.

It’s set point and Stanimal doesn’t disappoint as a timely ace seals it and moves him to within one set of round two.

Murray seems to have found a tactic to expose Wawrinka’s deep position and produces two more sublime drop shots to help him along to a game to 15.

Over to Stan now as he gears up to serve for a two-set lead.

Wawrinka lands a series of powerhouse serves and it’s enough to get him over the line as Murray goes too big on a return trying to make deuce.

Murray produces a sensational, disguised drop shot and then wins a wonderful face-off at the net.

He calls for more noise and appreciation from the Parisian crowd but it’s Stan who responds to threaten at 30-30.

Murray reasserts his authority as Stan fails to make the most of a make-able return and the two-time Olympic champion concludes the hold with another beauty of a crosscourt dropper.

Murray digs out a wonderful crosscourt forehand on the run to roll back the years and earn himself an ovation.

It proves to be in vain as Wawrinka unleashes a backhand up the line to maintain his advantage with a game to 30.

Wawrinka goes big and misses his mark which allows Murray to canter through a very simple love hold. The famous Muzza spirit is still there despite Wawrinka’s dominance so far.

Wawrinka gets that first-serve Mojo flowing and slams away a couple of forehand winners to consolidate in style with a hold to 15.

Murray volleys long and is then a distant second best trying to handle one of those walloped Wawrinka backhands down the line. The Scot responds with a crosscourt forehand but then dumps a serve and volley attempt into the net to hand over two break points. The Swiss only needs one as that crosscourt backhand is too deep and powerful for Murray to contain and the uphill battle just got that bit steeper for the Brit.

Stan follows Muzza’s example as he hits clutch mode on serve to turn around a 15-30 predicament before an intelligent slice down the line rushes the Scot into a forehand on the run that lands wide.

It’s a mixed bag from Muzza and he’s left relying on over-zealous hitting from Wawrinka after a double fault for 15-309 to somehow dig out the hold.

There’s no doubt – even at this early stage – that it was an important game for him if he’s to maintain serious ambitions of turning this match in his favour.

There’s no last-gasp turnaround for Murray as Wawrinka shrugs off a horror miss off the forehand on the second of two set points to secure a 53-minute opener on his third opportunity from deuce via a big serve down the T and a controlled drive volley.

Murray poses the serve-out question with an accomplished love hold.

That’s sharp work from Stanimal as he reels off four points on the spin from 0-15, slipping away a delightful S+V to finish and move within a game of taking the opener.

Wawrinka unloads a searing backhand down the line and then mixes it up with a slow-paced, low slice that forces the error and tees up triple break point.

Sir Andy stays calm with solid serving helping him to methodically save all three.

There’s a tussle from deuce but the Scot’s first serves do the trick and deny Stan what would surely have been a set-clinching double break.

Stan dusts himself down after a couple of avoidable errors put Murray in charge.

The Swiss nails a flurry of beastly forehands and executes a powerhouse smash to lead 40-30, but still has to reset at deuce after overcooking another stonking forehand.

Murray tries to turn the screw as the 2015 champion’s first serve goes AWOL, but despite the Scoot’s amazing defence it is Wawrinka who prevails with an emphatic smash and a cute, angled volley.

Murray stays firmly in touch with a third ace of the match and a deft, angled volley easing him through a dominant hold to 15.

There’s only one winner as Wawrinka comes out on top in a laser-like exchange of fizzing backhands.

Murray retorts with a quite majestic drop shot and then gets a look at two break points when Stan contrives to somehow blaze wide off the forehand on a 1-2 punch.

The Scot can’t dig a backhand over the net and then fails to track down an acute angle on a short forehand.

Wawrinka takes charge from deuce and maintains his advantage when Muzza lobs wide.

Muzza bookends a strong game to 15 with a couple of aces to get himself up and running.

Gasquet v Coric – Roland-Garros highlights

The firepower is on the Swiss star’s racquet right now as he continues to unload explosive strikes off both flanks.

Murray doggedly defends from deep behind his baseline but Stan backs up the heavy hitting with a simple foray to the net to pop away a routine volley and consolidate to 30.

It’s an eye-catching opening game peppered with brilliant winners from both ends to begin with.

Murray unloads a couple of blistering forehands but also leaks some over-zealous strikes long off that wing, coughing up an early break point.

Stan’s trademark crosscourt backhand also takes an early bow, but he misses a forehand return off a second serve to allow Muzza to make deuce.

The Scot’s miscued backhand means he needs to wipe out another BP but he does just that with a sublime stun volley.

In the end it’s third time lucky for Stanimal as he unloads a sizzling backhand down the line that’s just too good to get back.

This is the 23rd showdown between these two veterans with Muzza leading the match-up 13-9.

Stan owns it 5-1 on clay and won their most recent RG encounter in 2020 by a 6-1 6-3 6-2 scoreline.

The first night session at the 2024 French Open may well end up being one of the best as 2016 runner-up Andy Murray prepares to meet 2015 champion, Stan Wawrinka.

It is likely to be Muzza’s RG farewell this year, but can he extend it into the next round with a throwback victory at the expense of an old rival?

Join us then for what will be the finale to Day 1 at the 2024 French Open.