PARIS :Jacob Fearnley kept his cool amid a noisy French Open first round victory over former champion Stan Wawrinka on Monday with the local crowd vocally supporting the Swiss.
The 23-year-old Scot, making his debut in Paris, said he was not bothered when fans shouted at him during his straight sets victory because he could not understand what they were saying.
“A lot of it was in French,” Fearnley, ranked 55th in the world, told a press conference. “There were a lot of guys that were talking to me.
“I knew that they were supporting Stan. Honestly, it was mostly in French. They could have been saying nice things, but I doubt it.”
Last year Belgian David Goffin accused partisan fans of “total disrespect”, saying he had been spat on in his first round match against local favourite Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
Fearnley could next face France’s Ugo Humbert, who enjoyed loud support, including chants, by the home crowd in his clash with Australia’s Christopher O’Connell.
“That would be cool (playing Humbert),” said Fearnley, who was speaking before Humbert’s match finished. “Honestly, I enjoy the environment. As long as they keep speaking French, I don’t understand what they’re saying. That helps, as well.”
