PARIS — Fifth-seeded Kei Nishikori of Japan eased into the second round of the French Open on Sunday, beating French wild-card Paul-Henri Mathieu 6-3, 7-5, 6-1.
Winning 79 percent of points on his first serve and hammering down seven aces, Nishikori converted seven of his 15 break points and took 2 hours, 10 minutes to brush the former big hope of French tennis off Court Suzanne Lenglen at Roland Garros.
"I think it was solid match," Nishikori said. "I think it's not easy to play three straight sets easy. So, you know, there are some ups and downs, and I think I fought through pretty well.