TENNIS – FRENCH teenager Moise Kouame announced himself on the Grand Slam stage in emphatic fashion yesterday, beating former US Open champion Marin Cilic 7-6(4) 6-2 6-1 at the French Open to become the youngest man to win a major main-draw match in 17 years.
Handed a wildcard, the 17-year-old Frenchman looked entirely unfazed on Court Simonne Mathieu in the first-round match as he made his Grand Slam debut against a player 20 years his senior and a former world number three.
Cilic, the 2014 US Open champion and a Roland Garros semi-finalist in 2022, arrived in Paris ranked 46th in the world but was outplayed by the fearless teenager, whose speed in defence and deft drop shots repeatedly drew applause from the crowd. Ranked 318th, Kouame edged a tense opening set in a tiebreak after saving two set points before taking control of the match.
At 17 years and two months old, Kouame became the youngest player to win a Grand Slam match since Australia’s Bernard Tomic reached the 2009 Australian Open second round at the age of 16.
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