Djokovic sinks Sousa in three
There was little to concern Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros on Wednesday as he eased past Joao Sousa on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
Reigning men's singles champion Novak Djokovic enjoyed another routine win at Roland Garros on Wednesday as he beat Joao Sousa in straight sets to reach the third round.
Sousa was able to raise his game and prove competitive after a one-sided opener, but the world number 59 never looked likely to cause an upset on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
Djokovic, a straight-sets winner over Marcel Granollers in round one, completed a 6-1 6-4 6-3 victory in just over two hours and will face Diego Schwartzman of Argentina in his next outing.
Sousa found himself outclassed in the early exchanges and only avoided a first-set whitewash by fighting back from 0-30 and 15-40 down as he served in the sixth game.
The Portuguese put up more of a fight during set two, retrieving a break to level at 2-2 as the reigning champion briefly lost his focus.
Outcome was inevitable
Yet Djokovic immediately broke again and was able to extend his lead with the final outcome appearing inevitable.
To his credit, Sousa refused to give in and a frustrated Djokovic threw his racquet to the ground after a break-point opportunity had passed him by in game five of the third set.
Djokovic was then made to work hard for a hold of his own, but he overcame the minor blip to enjoy further success on the Sousa serve and battled through another testing game before sealing victory.