Paris, May 26: Fabrice Santoro beat fellow Frenchman Arnaud Clement in the longest singles match in modern tournament history. Fabrice Santoro beat fellow Frenchman Arnaud Clement in the longest singles match in modern tournament history on Tuesday (May 25), spending six hours 36 minutes on court before winning 6-4 6-3 6-7 3-6 16-14 at the French Open. The previous longest match had taken place in 1998 when Spaniard Alex Corretja beat Argentina's Hernan Gumy in five hours 31 minutes, also at Roland Garros. Clement, seeded 32nd, fought back from two sets down against his friend in a first round match interrupted by fading light on Monday evening. Santoro, who made only 40 unforced errors throughout the match, finally prevailed. The first round match equalled the highest number of games played at the French Open since the introduction of tie-breaks in 1973, with 71 games.

The record does not include Davis Cup matches. In 1982 American John McEnroe beat Mats Wilander of Sweden in six hours 22 minutes.

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Earlier, top seed Roger Federer raced into the French Open second round with a lightning quick 6-1 6-2 6-1destruction of Belgium's Kristof Vliegen.

The 22-year-old Swiss, beaten in the first round at Roland Garros in 2002 and 2003, was never in danger of suffering another shock in an embarrassingly one-sided match on Court Suzanne Lenglen.

Federer needed only one hour 16 minutes to seal the simplest of wins, claming victory with a driven forehand down the line on his third match point.

The Wimbledon and Australian Open champion could face three-times French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten in the third round. He plays German Nicolas Kiefer next.

Martina Navratilova's singles comeback lasted just 62 minutes as she was unceremoniously ejected in the first round.

Twenty years after winning the second of her two French titles, the 47-year-old American lost 6-1 6-3 to 19-year-old Gisela Dulko of Argentina.

Nine times Wimbledon singles champion Navratilova, playing before a packed crowd on Court One, dropped her serve in the opening game to allow Dulko to win the set in 25 minutes.

She broke serve to lead 3-2 in the second set but Dulko then won four games in a row to advance to the second round.
Bureau Report