 Photographer: Susan Mullane
Date: 03 Jun 2008 |  Photographer: Susan Mullane
Date: 03 Jun 2008 |  Photographer: Susan Mullane
Date: 02 Jun 2008 |  Photographer: Susan Mullane
Date: 03 Jun 2008 |  Photographer: Susan Mullane
Date: 03 Jun 2008 |  Photographer: Susan Mullane
Date: 03 Jun 2008 |
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| 03 Jun 2008 - Roland Garros, Paris - Eleanor Preston |  Related Audio |
| Janowicz takes Pole position in Paris |
 An Interview with Arantxa Rus and Lesley Kerkhove (MP3 format)
An interview with Jonathan Eysseric (MP3 format)
 
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Twelfth seed Jerzy Janowicz of Poland has his mind set on reaching the semi-finals of Junior Roland Garros this week and he edged a step closer to that ambition on Tuesday by reaching the third round.
“I played very well,” said Janowicz, who beat Marin Dragjana of Croatia 6-4, 6-4. “I tried to play aggressive and this match was where I got to practice some things for the third round and the quarter-finals. I feel very good and I think I can make the semi-finals. I spent a lot of time on clay when I was younger and I feel okay on it, though hardcourts are better for me because I have a very big serve but it’s good that I get better at doing other things and clay is good to learn on.”
Janowicz, who plays Antoine Feret of France next, was a finalist at last year’s Junior US Open and says that although his performances in New York has given him confidence that he can do well at the Junior Grand Slams, he also feels the burden of expectation. “I feel some pressure from that for sure but I am playing very good and after the US Open I know that I can do well at this tournament too,” he said. “I know what I can do and I will try to do that.”
Janowicz was joined in the third round by French favourite Jonathan Eysseric, who shrugged off a slow start to beat Cristobal Saavedra-Corvalan of Chile 6-2, 6-2.“I was feeling bad when I went on the court and after three or four games I started to feel better so I did not play very well today but it was enough to win, so that’s good for me,” said Eysseric. “Physically I was moving bad but then I started to play better and better. My game came back.”
Eysseric, who is seeded third in the juniors, played in the main draw at Roland Garros and pushed the 10th seed Andy Murray of Great Britain to five sets, an experience which he hopes will help him as he takes on his peers. “After you play a big match against a top player it’s easier to play against a junior player but I try to focus and play my game because this is a big competition for me. I want to win here in juniors so I will keep trying to play my game,” he said. A French winner would certainly please the Parisian public, who have been turning out in numbers to cheer on Eysseric his fellow French Juniors. “I have all the public for me and all the fans so it’s great, and when it’s difficult to play and I am tired I keep going because all the fans are here,” said Eysseric.
Elsewhere in the boys’ competition, top seed Bernard Tomic of Australia was pushed hard before beating Nassim Slilam of France 6-4, 4-6, 6-0 but fifth Henrique Cunha of Brazil lost 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 to Feret and ninth seed Ryan Harrison of the USA is also out after being upset by Soong-Jae Cho of Korea.
On the girls’ side, second seed Arantxa Rus of the Netherlands sealed her third round spot with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over Mallory Burdette of the USA and will take on Kristina Mladenovic of France next. “I think it’s going very well. I like clay the most of all the surfaces. It’s the surface I played the most on growing up,” said Rus. “I don’t know how well I can do here. Tomorrow will be a tough match because Mladenovic is a good player and the last time we played each other it was very tough.”
Tuesday was not without its upsets in the girls’ draw. Third seed Noppawan Lertcheewakarn of Thailand fell victim to talented Russian Ksenia Lykina and fifth-seeded Australian Jessica Moore was knocked out by Romanian Simona Halep.
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