Dominant and unfazed: Paparkar storms into Round 3 on Roland-Garros Juniors debut with stunning upset
Arnav Paparkar blazed into Round 3 on his debut at the Roland-Garros Junior Championships, playing like he belonged there.
The Indian junior, ranked 31st on the ITF junior circuit, overpowered 15th seed Kuan-Shou Chen of Chinese Taipei 6-2 6-4 in the second round — a result that was comfortable from the first game to the last. Chen, ranked inside the top 20 juniors in the world, had no real answer to the tall youngster’s game.
There was no nerves-driven slow start, no wobble in the second set. Paparkar set the tempo and held it.
Arnav’s third round test arrives Wednesday, when he faces the winner of Kennedy vs Jade. That is a step into more uncharted territory for the budding Indian junior, but the manner of this win suggests Paparkar is here to stay for a deeper run.
