Bulked up Sebastian Korda takes Roland Garros opener for first win since Australian Open

“It’s been a long journey since January.”

For Sebastian Korda, the first month of the 2023 season was one to remember. He held match point on Novak Djokovic in the Adelaide 1 final and followed up that performance with his deepest major run to date at the Australian Open.

The 22-year-old then saw all momentum halted when he picked up a wrist injury midway through his Melbourne quarterfinal with Karen Khachanov. Ten weeks in a brace followed and though he had the green light to return at the end of April, Korda was a far cry from the version of himself that shone through with eight wins Down Under.

“Definitely far from it, but slowly getting there. First tournament was in Madrid, felt terrible,” he said at the Tennis Channel desk on Sunday. “Still had a little pain in my first. After Rome, I finally had my first practice session over an hour.”

While the No. 24 seed may need time to regain his peak level, his channeling of Prakash Armitraj during his recovery process appeared to pay off on Day 1 of Roland Garros. Taking on Mackenzie McDonald, the Bradenton, Fla. resident’s smooth shot-making created enough separation in each set for a 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 victory over his countryman.

“I thought what you would do, I put my head down and I got in the gym,” he told Amritraj, who reacted ecstaticly upon hearing the news. “I gained seven kilos (roughly 15.4 pounds) of muscle, a good addition to my team with Jez Green. Just three months of hard work and just getting used to a new body on the court.”

In 2020, Korda advanced to the round of 16 at the Paris major after coming through the qualifying rounds. Last year, he was outclassed in the third round by Carlos Alcaraz after defeating the Spaniard in Monte Carlo. Korda can return to that stage if he advances past Sebastian Ofner.

“It’s a tough place to be upset. You’re always happy here.”