Two Stars Are Off on Sunday

They don’t like Sundays.

To finish a tournament, yes, but not to start a pressure-packed Grand Slam event. And so, top-seeded Roger Federer of Switzerland and No. 4 Maria Sharapova of Russia found themselves unsettled against unheralded opponents at the French Open before getting through to the second round.

The first Sunday start at Roland Garros nearly claimed an injured Sharapova, whose request for a later start had been denied by officials. On an ailing right ankle, the 19-year-old played one of her gutsier matches, rallying from a 5-2 third-set deficit and saving three match points to defeat Mashona Washington, 6-2, 5-7, 7-5.

“I’m a competitor,” said Sharapova, who won the final five games. “That’s why I play this sport. That’s why I’m here. If I wasn’t interested in anything, if something hurt, I could have easily been home watching last season of ‘Lost.’ ”

Her Sunday discomfort was shared by Federer, who also played against his wishes. His unease only grew in the first set against an unknown entity, as he needed to make rapid-fire adjustments in windy conditions against Argentine qualifier Diego Hartfield before winning, 7-5, 7-6 (2), 6-2, in 2 hours 35 minutes.

“I only knew one day ahead who I was going to play, and I never heard of his name or never seen him before,” said Federer, whose original opponent, Arnaud Clement of France, pulled out Saturday because of an injury. “I’m happy I didn’t lose, because otherwise I’d be very angry right now.... I requested not to play Sunday, so I wasn’t happy to play today. But I’m through. I can go home to Switzerland, come back in four days and be ready for Wednesday.”

He was joking about the Swiss road trip.

Sharapova was even more upset about the scheduling. She has been off the tour since the first week of April, missing the clay-court season because of a bone bruise in an ankle. Sharapova made a second request for a later start after aggravating her ankle on Friday in practice.

“The answer was, ‘You’re playing Sunday, fourth match,’ ” she said of tournament officials. “Obviously, it’s not in their best interest.... How did it make me feel? Well, it doesn’t make you feel great when you know the French federation, all they’re thinking about is selling tickets, making money and about their players.”

Despite her irritation she did retain her sense of humor. “I was calling 1-800-British Airways in the third set,” she said.

Sharapova saved one match point with a forehand winner in the eighth game of the third set. She saved two more on Washington’s serve in the next game; Washington hit a backhand long, and Sharapova erased the third with a forehand winner.

Just as Washington was set to serve on her second match point, two pigeons landed on the court to interrupt matters.

“What pigeons? What pigeons?” said Washington, who turns 30 this week. “It wasn’t good or bad. I mean, you know, who knows?”

Said Sharapova, smiling: “They’re my best friends. I’m actually thinking of buying a few in my house.”

The 2004 Wimbledon champion finished fast and decisively after saving the match points, losing only four points in the last three games. Washington was asked about that power surge.

“Maybe a little more grunt,” she said, smiling. “Yeah, maybe that’s about it.”

The Sharapova-Washington battle was the most dramatic of the finished matches on a lightly scheduled opening day. Eleven matches were completed, including top-seeded Frenchwoman Amelie Mauresmo’s 6-4, 6-4 victory against Meghann Shaughnessy. A marathon between Fabrice Santoro of France and Jose Acasuso of Argentina was stopped in the fifth set because of darkness.

The losing player with the biggest smile at Roland Garros had to be Hartfield. The 25-year-old from Obera, Argentina, playing his first tour-level match, hardly seemed in awe at the start, breaking Federer twice to lead 3-0. He served for the first set at 5-4 but let it slip away with a costly double fault at 30-30.

Hartfield, ranked No. 156, has been winding his way through the minor league circuit in the United States, winning two challenger events in May. Reaching center stage was personal fulfillment after difficult economic times trying to make it.

“I want to take the video to remind [me] of this match all my life,” he said. “It’s going to be so good.”

Then there’s the matter of his last name. He said his great-grandparents were from Germany.

“In Argentina, you have everything, not only Spanish names,” he said. “Italian, English. We’re coming from Germany. My father can speak German. He didn’t teach me. He didn’t speak it to me when I was young. I’m disappointed about that. Now with [speaking] English, I think it’s OK.”