French Open LIVE: Alexander Zverev takes tight first set against Czech talent Jakub Mensik

Mensik is looking rather deflated, as well he might be. A couple of shanked returns fail to clear the net and that hands over the set.

Mensik’s backhand is breaking down a bit and he’s in trouble at 0-30.

An ace out wide helps him out, but he has no response to a Zverev backhand winner, and the this match is in danger of completely barrelling away from him.

He comes out on top in another fast net exchange. But a double fault hands over the break, and Zverev will serve for a two-set lead.

Zverev races to a routine hold, courtesy of some sloppy errors from Mensik.

Mensik stops play to indicate a Zverev ball is out, and the umpire agrees. A big ace and some more tidy serving wrap up a hold to love. Much better from the Czech.

Well, well. A dire double fault, the second serve landing miles beyond the service box, and this game is a bit more interesting. Deuce.

But two big first serves help him out of trouble.

Zverev is in cruise control now. He dinks in a drop shot, has Mensik pinned at the net, and fizzes a volley cross-court behind him.

Mensik goes for the backhand slice drop shot but it falls short and his frustration is evident, the body language telling the story.

But Zverev completely stumbles over a routine forehand, and a vicious Mensik forehand to the baseline takes him by surprise too and he can’t clear the net. 40-30.

Zverev hammers a forehand cross-court behind Mensik as he ventures forward and that’s another two break points.

And he takes it at the first time of asking, the pair going back and forth in a table-tennis style net rally, before Mensik can’t stretch far enough and thwacks the ball off his frame and out.

A Zverev forehand looks to be dropping well long but just about makes it onto the line.

The umpire checks a first serve which certainly looked out from the press box, and he double faults for the first time. But another vicious serve keeps him in control and Mensik can’t reach the resulting drop shot.

Mensik gets onto the front foot with a nice drive volley but then double faults and tips his head back in frustration. His first serve percentage has been way down, at 55 per cent.

But he holds with a booming serve and tidy volley.

Some of the fight looks to have gone out of Mensik now. Zverev redirects him nicely with the combo of a serve out wide and forehand into the opposite corner, does it again, and that brings up set point.

Mensik drags one back with another brilliant backhand winner down the line, but Zverev has two more set points.

And he goes long! 40-30.

An ace seals the set. The German has just been too solid.