Roberto Carballes Baena

PARIS - Serbia's Novak Djokovic, the world number one in men's tennis singles, is through to the Roland Garros third round after a 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 victory over world number 63 Roberto Carballes Baena of Spain in the second round on Thursday.

PARIS - Serbia's Novak Djokovic, the world number one in men's tennis singles, has got off to a successful start to his title defence at Roland Garros by defeating Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 in the opening round on Tuesday evening.

Djokovic, who won after two and a half hours of play, is now 2-0 head-to-head against Herbert.

This means that the two can only meet in the final, it was decided by draw.

MELBOURNE - Serbia's top-ranked tennis player Novak Djokovic and Spaniard Rafael Nadal, his biggest rival at the upcoming Australian Open, are on the opposite sides of the draw for the tournament and will not meet before the final.

The pairing of Romanian tennis player Florin Mergea and German Andre Begemann advanced on Wednesday to the quarterfinals of the EUR 137,560 Szczecin Challenger (Poland), after defeating 6-4, 5-7, 10-7 the Facundo Arguello (Argentina) / Roberto Carballes Baena (Spain) duo. Mergea and his partner claimed the victory after an hour and 36 minutes.

Serbian tennis player will play against Roberto Carballes Baena in the first round on Flushing Meadows.

SOCCER: Thai entrepreneur Pairoj Piempongsant landed in Athens on Friday evening to broker a deal for the takeover of Panathinaikos by the Pan Asia fund with owner Yiannis Alafouzos.

Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas reacts after defeating Spain's Roberto Carballes Baena in the quarterfinal match of the Estoril Open tennis tournament in Cascais, near Lisbon, Portugal, on Friday. [EPA]