Argentinian tennis is enjoying a banner tournament at Roland Garros 2020, and reigning men’s wheelchair champion Gustavo Fernandez could not be happier. Like compatriots Diego Schwartzman and qualifying sensation Nadia Podoroska, the world No.2 is through to the semi-finals in Paris after opening his title defence with a 6-3 6-3 victory over Gordon Reid.

“I’m loving it,” Fernandez said. “I love to see these guys doing very well. I know them both, and I know how hard it has been for both of them to get there. I really enjoy it when people who work really hard have success and good results. I’m really looking forward to seeing them battle again in the semi-finals.”

In a repeat of both the 2016 and 2019 finals, Fernandez beat Reid to book a semi-final showdown with Great Britain’s Alfie Hewett, who downed the 26-year-old in the French Riviera Open final last week.

Fernandez looked to the positives from the warm-up event, which helped him adjust to the surface and cooler conditions after last month’s US Open.

“It feels a lot better to have a tournament before,” he said. “We’d been spending eight months without playing and then went to the US Open for the first time. It was tough for the rhythm.

“The conditions out there, for us, I don’t see being way too different. Of course, it’s a bit heavier, and the balls are a bit different. But for me personally, I like it. Today it was a coincidence that there was no rain and it wasn’t as windy as other days, but it is what it is. We have to play with these conditions and deal with it, and we are prepared to do that. Sometimes they may not be perfect, but it’s part of the job.”

Hewett opened with a 7-5 6-3 win over Stephane Houdet, while in the top half, top seed Shingo Kunieda eased to a 6-2 6-0 victory over French wild card Frederic Cattaneo in 49 minutes. Up next for the 36-year-old is Belgium’s Joachim Gerard, who compounded a tough day for the French contingent with a 6-4 6-3 win over Nicolas Peifer.

Three-set matches were the order of the day in the women’s singles draw, with top seed Diede De Groot bouncing back from a second-set whitewash to beat Jordanne Whiley 6-3 0-6 6-1. Yui Kamiji, the Japanese No.2 seed, fought back from a set down to overcome Marjolein Buis 6-7(7) 6-2 6-1, and will face Aniek Van Koot in the semi-finals after the Dutchwoman battled past French wild card Charlotte Famin 6-4 4-6 6-3 in two hours, 18 minutes.

Up next for De Groot is Japan’s Momoko Ohtani, building on her impressive Grand Slam debut in New York with a 6-4 6-1 victory over Kgothatso Montjane of South Africa.