8.10 pm: Tipsarevic holds his serve and wins 7-6 (3), 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 and will face No.22 seed Marat Safin in the second round. And that's it for today. As a reminder to any of you just joining us, the remainder of the day's play was cancelled due to the rain - seven matches only out of 24 were completed, but since the "Sunday Start" gives us an extra day, we're actually ahead of schedule (and by George we might well need it, since rain is forecast again for tomorrow - less of it, hopefully, than today). Play will begin (weather permitting) at 11am, with Alize Cornet facing Venus Williams on centre court, before Roger Federer, Richard Gasquet and Jelena Jankovic make their bows later. On Lenglen, fans will see Severine Bremond, Arnaud Clement, Ivan Ljubicic, Marion Bartoli and Aravane Rezai. Nikolay Davydenko will be on court No.1, as will Fernando Gonzalez and Nicole Vaidisova (though not all at the same time, I hasten to add). And of course, I will be here, typing my fingers to the bone in the hope of making the rain delays pass by just that little bit quicker.
Thank you all for your feedback. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday, and I'll see you here tomorrow, 11 am CET. multimedia@fft.fr is the address for any overnight feedback, but try not to give me too much work to do in the morning - I'm a busy man...
8.05 pm: Do forgive me, I was busy preparing the photo galleries - http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/news/photos/index.html . In the mean time, No.1 seed Justine Henin did a Serena and after worrying us all for a game or two, hit her stride and won the last 5 games to win 6-4, 6-3 over Elena Vesnina (who did however put up a creditable fight). The three-time champion will face Tamira Paszek in the second round. In the only other remaining gamem Tipsarevic has three break points that would leave him serving for the match (and leave me to tidy up a few loose ends then head off for a well earned repast). And... Vemic hits it long, Tipsarevic is 5-3 up and four points from the second round.
7.35 pm: By George, it's all happening here in Paris. Serena and Vesnina (a rhyming couplet - perhaps they should play doubles together) are each 3-1 up (on Pironkova and Henin respectively). Vemic is serving for the set to pull things back to 2-1, while Potito (a fine first name in my opinion) Starace has taken the tie-break 7-5 and the match over Ivo Minar, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (5). The Italian will play the winner of the battle of the Bs tomorrow - Berlocq and Benneteau.
7.25 pm : Serena's running away with the final set and finally looking like the player we know and love. 2-1 in the third set on the back of an early break. On No.2 court, the fourth set between Minar and Starace has gone to a tie-break, while Vesnina has broken Henin to open the second set on Chatrier court. Vemic is still a break to the good (but two sets down) against his fellow Serb Tipsarevic out on court 17.
7.15 pm: Proving that I truly am a jinx, Henin immediately breaks her Russian opponent (with the help of a double fault after Vesnina had saved a set point) to win the first set 6-4. On court No.2, Starace saves a set point and makes it 5-5 and is now only two games away from the second round.
7.10 pm: Noting my liking for all things Swiss, JE asks about Marie-Gaïané Mikaelian. Well, the poor Swiss miss has had three operations on her shoulder which still isn't quite right. She has not played now for two years, and will make a decision within the next 12 months as to whether she is going to hang up her racquet for good, which would be a great shame. Meanwhile, back on court, Serena has taken the second set 6-1. All it took was a little encouragement from yours truly, and she was on her way...
Elsewhere, top seed Justine Henin is being pegged back by Elena Vesnina, who is serving at 4-5 in the first set out on a chilly centre court.
7.05 pm: Serena has taken umbrage at my comments and has really found her stride, racing into a 5-1 lead in the second set and now serving to level things at one set all. Justine Henin leads Elena Vesnina 5-2, while Minar-Starace is still going with service. Meanwhile, Vemic may be making a comeback - despite being two sets down, he has managed to break early in the third. A big hello meanwhile to Fatima from the Dinara Safina fanclub. I think you'll be seeing plenty more of the powerful Russian over the coming two weeks.
6.50pm: Minar and Starace is going with serve in the fourth set (the Italian leads two sets to one), while Tipsarevic has taken a 2-0 lead over Vemic out on court 17, taking the second set 6-4. Vesnina breaks back immediately and is serving against Henin at 2-3, while Serena has managed to hold her serve to lead 2-1 in the second set. The statuesque American looks uncomfortable out there, all wrapped up in an admittedly very fetching light purple long-sleeved sweatshirt (with matching headband).
6.45 pm: Starace takes a 2-1 lead, taking the third set 6-4 from Minar. Henin breaks Vesnina to lead 3-1, while Miss Safina has joined her brother in the second round, winning 7-5, 6-4 over Fedak. 27 winners from the Russian No.10 seed.
6.30 pm: Apologies for the delay – server problems. But we're back now just in time for the action. Timara Paszek makes short work of Aiko Nakamura and takes the match 6-4, 6-0. 18 winners from the Austrian, 26 unforced errors from the Japanese girl tell the story. Dinara Safina breaks back to make it 4-4 against Yuliana Fedak, while Serena's return to the courts has not seen her rhythm improve – Tsvetana Pironkova takes the first set 7-5. 25 unforced errors already for a far-from-serene Serena…
6.20 pm: Ooh! Ooh! It's barely drizzling, the covers are coming off and - yes, ladies and gentlemen, I do believe we're going to get some tennis. Right, the official word is: all matches which have yet to begin have been cancelled except Justine Henin - Elena Vesnina, since that's on centre court, where Marat Safin made short work of his first round tie this lunchtime. So, brace yourselves, I reckon we're in for some tennis! Mexican waves all round, even here in the media centre! The crowd, those hardy souls who stuck it out for about four hours this afternoon, are about to be rewarded. As are you, dear Internet public. You are still there, aren't you? multimedia@fft.fr if you fancy mailing, but don't ask me any awkward questions!
To reply to Pedrag and Susan, the weather tomorrow should be a little bit better (but still on the wet and chilly side). Adelina, we're hoping to see Kim Clijsters here as a spectator - she'll always be welcome. To Bette - Serena's due back out any minute now (and Georgios, I think you were being harsh on her - it was raining by the time Serena consulted the umpire during play earlier).
5.15 pm: Well, we're still in the midst of a downpour of biblical proportions. We haven't heard from the tournament directors yet, but it is unlikely that the covers will be coming off again today. As soon as they give the official nod, we'll let you know. Tomorrow's schedule will also be updated once play has been officially suspended, meaning that Tamira Paszek's friend Robert, who is following the action via his computer in sunny Barcelona, will be able to find out at what point the Austrian will be back on court tomorrow in her bid to finish off Aiko Nakamura. Rico is a Michaella Krajicek fan and hopes that she will still get to play on Lenglen tomorrow, in her match against French seed Severine Bremond. Well folks, as soon as I find out, you'll be the first to hear.
Thanks to Sarah Khan for her email. Keep an eye out for Sania Haq - an up-and-coming player of Pakistani origin who is currently playing collegiate tennis in the States.
4.35 pm: I just made the mistake of venturing outside and got unceremoniously drenched. To answer Bill's question, a pound to a penny (or rather a euro to a centime) says that they will call play off for the day at 5 pm, much to the relief no doubt of Aiko Nakamura, who will now have 24 hours in which to get her game sorted out and stave off defeat. Octavius wants to know my favourite players - well my friend, as a Brit based in Switzerland, I am distraught about the withdrawals of Murray and Hingis, and will be rooting for Rocket Roger (and Tiger Tim, of course) all the way. Maybe even Stan the Man Wawrinka (the only player in either draw with two Ws in his name) will be able to WoW us all and cause and upset, while Patty Schnyder has a relatively easy run in the lower half of the draw (unlike her compatriot Emmnuelle Gagliardi, who will come up against last year's revelation Nicole Vaidisova in the first round, should the rain ever abate). My "one to watch" is another Swiss Miss, Timea Bacsinszky, who flew through the qualifiers. A name to remember for the future (particularly if you're playing scrabble).
Oh, and to all my Croatian readers, I'm delighted to hear it's sunny out there... Grrr...
4.15 pm: Mails from as far afield as Cyprus, Melbourne and Dundee, and much as I would like to give you some good news, the official word is that there will be no play before 5 pm, at which point the tournament directors will review the situation. It's still raining, but as soon as it stops, it should be sufficiently windy to dry any moisture out quite quickly, so keep your fingers crossed, dear readers. In the meantime, why not peruse our photo galleries? http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/news/photos/index.html
3.55 pm: I'm back - did you miss me? It would appear that Matt, Marius, Marty and Stepan did, not to mention my new fan-club of Angeline and Adelina. Thank you one and all, and sorry to disappoint you, but the rain parisi-ain falls mainly on the courts at the moment. And to answer all of your questions, play unlikely today, and the forecast for tomorrow is gloomy. I'll be here though, whatever the weather. Tuesday is apparently going to be dry, so there's hope yet. Since starting on a Sunday gives the organisers an extra day, we're not actually behind schedule at the moment. Ask me that question again this time tomorrow though...
3.25 pm: I can't stand the rain, against my windo-o-o-ow (look, I'm British, I can talk about the rain all day). A big hello goes out to flint2 in Croatia who is impatiently waiting for the tennis to start. Aren't we all, my friend... It's still what can only be described as nice weather for ducks here in grey Paree. Keep the mails coming, though - multimedia@fft.fr And if you fancy listening to Radio Roland Garros, then the French version is currently on the air. For the dulcet tones of Benoit and Bruno, click here: http://www.rolandgarros.com/fr_FR/multimedia/radio/index.html
3.05 pm: It's now raining so much that Radio Roland Garros is temporarily off the air. I ask you - am I the only one here earning my corn? Anybody else out there stuck in an office? Mail me - workers of the world unite...Raincoats, cagoules, windcheaters and sou'westers are the order of the day in the highways and byways of Roland Garros, so no play envisaged at the moment, to reply to the queries of Sim from Belgium and Miro. You fellows do win the (honorary, ie non-existant) prize for the first mails sent to me. Well done. Pat yourselves on the back.
2.40 pm: Pff. Waddaya know. As soon as the covers come off, the rain starts again. Hardly what one expects from Paris in the spring... Covers back on, as you were...
2.27 pm: Aye aye. Covers coming off, even though there's still a hint of precipitation in the air. Eyes down, look in... whisper it quietly, but we may actually be in for a little bit of tennis here...
2.15 pm: It's a little brighter here in the western suburbs of Paris, but there's still just enough rain to keep the covers on. I'm optimistic that play will be possible within half-an-hour, though. In the meantime, don't forget to listen to our colleagues on Radio Roland Garros (click on the link below). Elsewhere in the world, the Formula One is enjoying better weather in Monaco (as you'd expect), while in England, the cricket's suffered a similar fate to the tennis but the golfers are out on the course, sporting pullovers and rain jackets (and mittens, hot water bottles, hip flasks...)
1.34 pm: Raindrops keep falling on my... well, on the spectators, actually, most of whom are seeking shelter along the alleyways of Roland Garros, meaning that I had to elbow my way through to the humble press cafeteria for a swift lunch. It's not exactly pouring down, but there's certainly not enough blue in the sky to make a sailor a new suit, or whatever it was my granny used to say. Radio Roland Garros will be broadcasting as of 2 pm, and you can access the link here: http://www.rolandgarros.com/en_FR/multimedia/radio/index.html And for those of you who want to keep me company as I endeavour to entertain you with my updates, then multimedia@fft.fr is the address to send me your questions, feedback, predictions, requests, jokes, recipes...
1.18 pm: Raining cats and dogs here, I'm afraid. We have however had our first winner - Russian No.22 seed Marat Safin strolled through against Spanish lucky loser Fernando Vicente in straight sets, 6-1, 6-3, 6-1. Marat's sister Dinara is one set up but 2-4 (15-15) down in the second against Ukraine's Yuliana Fedak, while Serena will have to serve to save the set at 5-6 against Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova once the rain abates (probably this time next week by the look of the skies...) Austria's Tamira Paszek is leading 6-4, 5-0 over Japan's Aiko Nakamura, and the Serbian men's derby between Janko Tipsarevic and Duso Vemic stands at 7-6, 6-2 to the former. The winner will face Safin in the second round.
12.20 pm: The drizzle persists, and play is halted on Suzanne Lenglen court, with Serena serving to save the first set against Pironkova. The American will no doubt be glad of the break. Play continues elsewhere, with Fedak a break up (though a set down) on Safina in the second (3-1). Starace takes the second to level matters at 1-1 against Minar. It is also 1-1 in the third set. Play stops on court 7 with Paszek 6-4, 5-0 up over Nakamura. On centre court, they are made of sterner stuff, with Safin two sets up and 1-1 in the third against Vicente.
12.08 pm: The first raindrops of the tournament begin to fall... Sigh... but the players are all still out on court. Minar takes the first set 6-4, but Starace is already two breaks to the good in the second set (4-1). Serena saves a handful of set points and fights back to break Pironkova to make it 5-5. Safina breaks Fedak in the 12th game to win the first set, while Paszek also takes the opener, 6-4, against Nakamura, and secures an early break to lead 2-0 oin the second. Safin is two sets to love up, 6-1, 6-3. Tipsarevic takes the first set, winning the tie-break 7-3 over Vemic.
11.38 am: Safin is already serving for the first set, 5-1 up against Vicente. Minar is still a break ahead and leads Starace 3-2, as is Nakamura against Paszek (2-1). Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova has broken Serena Williams to lead 2-1 in the first set, while Fedak is also a break up on Safina (2-1). Tipsarevic-Vemic is 2-2.
11.21 am: Fernando Vicente and Marat Safin are underway on centre court, or Philippe Chatrier as it is known here, with the Russian 3-1 up after an early break. Marat's sister Dinara Safina is also on court but is a break down against Yuliana Fedak. Czech Ivo Minar is already a break to the good against Italy's Potito Starace, while the Serbian duel between Janko Tipsarevic and Duso Vemic has just begun. Aiko Nakamura (Japan) leads Tamira Paszek (Austria) 1-0 on court No.7.
