Finally, much nicer weather moved into Paris on Tuesday, and the grounds were loaded with action. It was a successful day for some favorites, but others met unexpected early exits.

During warmup tournaments prior to Roland Garros, Rafael Nadal caught the eye of many who believed that he may have returned to his previous form on clay. The anointed “King of Clay” certainly fueled that speculation with a 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 win over Sam Groth on Suzanne-Lenglen Court. The nine-time French Open champion dominated play from the start, playing clean tennis throughout. Nadal finished with just three unforced errors in a match that lasted only an hour and 22 minutes, his fastest ever at the event.

Nadal recapped the day afterwards. “It's obvious that this was a good start for me,” he said. “The most important thing I had to do was return well, and then play without too many mistakes. It's obvious that this opponent plays better on faster surfaces. In general, I played a solid match. Feeling the support of the crowd is always special for me here, so thank you to them for that.”

While Nadal is seeking his 10th title at Roland Garros, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic is hoping to find the one missing piece in his illustrious career with his first. It was a good start toward that goal as he dispatched Yen-Hsun Lu 6-4, 6-1, 6-1.

Djokovic broke Lu’s serve seven times and controlled play with 35 winners on the day. The Serb addressed questions as to whether this will be the year he completes a career Grand Slam with a title in Paris. “It's not the first time this year that I'm experiencing such anticipation and expectations,” he said. “As a matter of fact, I think it's been now a few years in a row that is a very similar situation where I'm approaching this tournament as one of the favorites, and obviously people wonder if this is the year or not. I wonder myself.”

While Nadal and Djokovic cruised, second-seeded Andy Murray had no such luck as he was forced to battle the ageless Radek Stepanek in a five-set, 3-6, 3-6, 6-0, 6-3, 7-5 win. In a match that was interrupted on Monday and lasted three hours 41 minutes, Murray took the 37-year-old’s best shot.

Stepanek was quick out of the gate and kept the Scot on his heels, playing inspired tennis. But as daylight grew short on Monday, it appeared the Czech was beginning to feel the effects of the long, grueling match. Murray pushed hard to continue play before darkness but would have to wait until Tuesday morning. When play resumed, he met a fresh Stepanek once again, but he found enough cracks in his stellar play to gain the one service break he would need to advance to the second round.

Afterwards, Murray was asked about his on-court demeanor during the two-day match. “I fought extremely hard from a very, very difficult position,” he said. “Yes, I was getting frustrated, but I gave everything to try to win and got myself out of a situation that not all players would have been able to get themselves out of.”

In the women’s draw, Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber was not able to completely dig herself out of a difficult position and an early hole, and she fell to Kiki Bertens 2-6, 6-3, 3-6.

Kerber was on the defensive for much of the match as Bertens dictated with first-strike tennis. The German did not successfully respond for much of the match and finished with 28 unforced errors to go with just nine winners.

Kerber put her first-round exit into perspective, saying “The first rounds are always tough in the tournament, especially for me, but what can I say? It happens. She's a tough opponent. I was ready. But at the end she made the important points.”

Later, Victoria Azarenka was forced to retire as her French Open ended quickly due to injury. The Belarusian, who had shown so much promise after recovering from a long bout with injuries, was down 3-6, 7-6, 0-4 to Karen Knapp when she made the decision.

Azarenka, who spent portions of the match in tears, was treated by medical personnel as she tried to fight through an obvious knee injury. Somehow, she was able to equalize the match by winning a second-set tiebreak. But in the third set, with her movement clearly restricted, she was forced to retire.

The injury appeared to occur in the fifth game of the second set, and she called for a trainer with the set tied at 3-3. Later in the set, it appeared to worsen, and she struggled to serve. She was no longer able to contain her frustrations and smashed a racket, receiving a warning. Azarenka was considered a top contender to win the title in Paris.

With the exits of Kerber and Azarenka, the draw opened for top-seeded Serena Williams, who cruised by Magdalena Rybarikova 6-2, 6-0. Rybarikova battled through despite not being 100 percent during the match as well.