Taylor Fritz knew to expect a tough test against Roland Garros qualifier Santiago Fa Rodriguez Taverna in round one, but the American player backed himself to keep pushing on in the clay-court Grand Slam this year.
Firtz took on an in-form Taverna in his opening round match at the 2022 Roland Garros as the young Argentinian won three matches in a row to make his first-ever main draw at the event.
The world number 201 gave 14th-ranked Fritz a scare by winning the second and fourth sets in a marathon five-set clash. However, Fritz eventually held his nerve to defeat Taverna to progress to the second round of the Roland Garros.
It was a much-needed confidence booster for the American, who has not played since reaching the Monte Carlo Masters quarter-final in early April.
After reaching the second round at the French Open for a fourth consecutive season, Frtiz reflected on his challenging first-round clash. When speaking after his win over Taverna, 13th-seeded Fritz said he always knew a tough encounter was coming up against an in-form opponent.
"I wasn't too surprised. I knew kind of what to expect and I knew that he had won three matches in a row, [his] first main draw, the guy's obviously playing his best tennis. He's really confident, he's got nothing to lose playing me, so I expected his level to be high and I think the match was tough."
Fritz will now face world number 131 Bernabe Zapata Miralles in the second round at the Roland Garros and the American will be targetting a deep run for the first time in Paris.
In five previous main draw appearances at the clay-court Grand Slam, Fritz has only progressed past the second round once - back in 2020.
However, the world number 14 is fully aware that his background in America, usually playing on hard court surfaces, gives him somewhat of a disadvantage compared to other European competitors.
Yet the 2022 Indian Wells champion is eager not to let that disrupt his game, and he is confident that he can translate his potential onto the clay courts this season.
"I think I play pretty well on clay, but it's very matchup based. You get a lot of guys that grew up playing on [it] and that's what suits their game and so they're much more comfortable on it than I am…But as far as my potential to beat people, I think that that's still the same."