Frenchman Monfils fuels youth movement

PARIS -- Gael Monfils hopped out of his changeover chair and stood with his back to the stands, raising his arms to join the French Open fans -- his fans -- as they did the wave.

All of 19, Monfils is giving locals hope of a long-awaited homegrown champion, and he was part of a pack of youngsters who brought some exuberance to another dreary, rainy day at Roland Garros.

Facing the oldest man in the field, 35-year-old Dick Norman, Monfils overcame a 2-1 deficit in sets for the second consecutive match and won 4-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-0, 7-5 Thursday to reach the third round, equaling his best Grand Slam showing.

"This is the kind of match," Monfils had the wherewithal to recognize, "that happens just a few times in a career."

Another 19-year-old, Novak Djokovic of Serbia-Montenegro, pulled off the day's biggest upset, eliminating No. 9 Fernando Gonzalez 6-4, 6-1, 3-6, 4-6, 6-1.

Two other, more modest, surprises came when Argentine qualifier Martin Vassallo Arguello beat No. 21 Sebastien Grosjean 1-6, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 in a match carried over from Wednesday night, and Julien Benneteau of France defeated No. 19 Marcos Baghdatis 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-7 (1), 6-4.

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French Open results

Thursday at Stade Roland Garros, Paris; Purse: $18.23 million (Grand Slam); Surface: Clay-Outdoor

Singles

Men

Second Round

Radek Stepanek (11), Czech Republic, def. Davide Sanguinetti, Italy, 6-3, 6-3, 6-1.

Olivier Rochus (27), Belgium, def. Jiri Vanek, Czech Republic, 6-2, 6-0, 6-2.

Lleyton Hewitt (14), Australia, def. Mathieu Montcourt, France, 7-5, 6-3, 6-3.

Dmitry Tursunov (31), Russia, def. Tim Henman, Britain, 6-3, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4.

Martin Vassallo Arguello, Argentina, def. Sebastien Grosjean (21), France, 1-6, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2.

Tommy Robredo (7), Spain, def. Ilia Bozoljac, Serbia-Montenegro, 7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1.

Julien Benneteau, France, def. Marcos Baghdatis (19), Cyprus, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-7 (1), 6-4.

Alberto Martin, Spain, def. Dieter Kindlmann, Germany, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.

Dominik Hrbaty (22), Slovakia, def. Ivo Karlovic, Croatia, 4-6, 6-4, 6-7 (2), 7-5, 6-2.

Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo, Spain, def. Christophe Rochus, Belgium, 5-2, retired.

Novak Djokovic, Serbia-Montenegro, def. Fernando Gonzalez (9), Chile, 6-4, 6-1, 3-6, 4-6, 6-1.

Paul-Henri Mathieu (29), France, def. Florent Serra, France, 6-0, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (6).

Tommy Haas (23), Germany, def. Alexander Waske, Germany, 6-4, 7-5, 6-7 (6), 6-4.

Gael Monfils (25), France, def. Dick Norman, Belgium, 4-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-0, 7-5.

Ivan Ljubicic (4), Croatia, def. Oscar Hernandez, Spain, 6-3, 6-7 (7), 6-1, 6-2.

Fernando Verdasco (28), Spain, vs. Juan Monaco, Argentina, 6-4, 4-6, 2-2, susp., darkness.

Nicolas Almagro, Spain, leads James Blake (8), United States, 7-6 (5), susp., darkness.

David Ferrer (15), Spain, leads Jeremy Chardy, France, 6-1, 6-4, susp., darkness.

Women

Second Round

Ana Ivanovic (19), Serbia-Montenegro, def. Emilie Loit, France, 6-1, 6-1.

Anastasia Myskina (10), Russia, def. Melinda Czink, Hungary, 6-2, 6-4.

Justine Henin-Hardenne (5), Belgium, def. Anastasiya Yakimova, Belarus, 6-2, 7-5.

Shenay Perry, United States, def. Akiko Morigami, Japan, 6-3, 6-0.

Shahar Peer (31), Israel, def. Tsvetana Pironkova, Bulgaria, 6-2, 6-3.

Daniela Hantuchova (15), Slovakia, def. Emmanuelle Gagliardi, Switzerland, 3-6, 6-2, 6-3.

Gisela Dulko (32), Argentina, def. Yuliana Fedak, Ukraine, 6-2, 6-4.

Maria Kirilenko (20), Russia, def. Mathilde Johansson, France, 6-0, 6-1.

Nathalie Dechy (21), France, def. Catalina Castano, Colombia, 6-4, 2-6, 6-3.

Viktoriya Kutuzova, Ukraine, leads Elena Dementieva (6), Russia, 5-1, susp., darkness.

Anna-Lena Groenefeld (13), Germany, vs. Jamea Jackson, United States, 6-7 (8), 6-2, susp., darkness.