Marcos registered a milestone win at Roland Garros on Tuesday, claiming his 300th tour-level victory 7-5, 6-4, 6-1 over Gilles Muller.
Friends and old foes from their junior days, Marcos and Muller battled for exactly two hours in the first-round clash. He withstood a barrage of 43 winners from the Luxembourg native, while firing 30 of his own, including seven aces. He converted on eight of 23 break chances.
Marcos turned in a strong effort to battle back from the brink in the first set, having trailed 1-5 after conceding a pair of early breaks. But he would change the momentum in a flash, breaking three consecutive times and reeling off six straight games in total to grab the opener 7-5.
Marcos would once again rally after falling behind an immediate break in the second set, capturing 12 of the last 15 games of the match. He earned his 10th match win at Roland Garros, advancing to the second round for the seventh time.
Marcos will next face home favourite and sixth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. They previous squared off in the Australian Open earlier this year, with the Frenchman prevailing in four tight sets. Marcos is seeking his first victory over the 31 year old.
Marcos' Milestone Wins
No. 1: d. Gregory Carraz at 2004 Athens Olympics
No. 100: d. Marat Safin at 2008 Australian Open
No. 200: d. Alex Bogomolov Jr at 2011 Kuala Lumpur
No. 300: d. Gilles Muller at 2016 Roland Garros
