Watch: Novak Djokovic celebrates first round French Open victory with 'little wiggle' in bid for 25th Grand Slam triumph

Djokovic came through a scare, losing the first set to the 22-year-old, before restoring the usual order and advancing to the second round in four sets - winning 5-7 7-5 6-1 6-4.

The Serbian is still on the hunt for an unprecedented 25th major title that would see him move clear of Margaret Court for the most Grand Slams in the sport.

And with Carlos Alcaraz out injured, the French Open and upcoming Wimbledon represent the best chances the 39-year-old may get to do so.

Having survived the scare against world No. 83 Mpetshi Perricard, Djokovic proceeded to let the crowd know how much it still means to him with a victory dance at Roland-Garros.

TNT Sports experts John McEnroe and Mats Wilander took his jig to be a sign of Djokovic being in a good spot both physically and mentally, as he searches for his fourth French Open crown.

McEnroe, who himself was a French Open finalist in 1984, said: "I thought he was hitting the ball pretty well.

"It took him a while to figure it out, but at the end of the day, I thought he looked pretty good.

"Let’s be real, does he care about these other tournaments? No, he cares about the majors. Novak is here to try and win 25, and that’s his goal.

"He didn’t get into a rhythm, because he wasn’t allowed to get into a rhythm, so that’s an awkward match for someone like him to play.

"At the end, he started to get into it, and that’s why he started to do the little jig, or whatever he was doing with the hips. He was dancing pretty well, I’ve got to give him credit."

Wilander, who won the French Open three times between 1982 and 1988, believes the match was not the easiest to play, and praised Djokovic for getting through unscathed.

He said: "I think this type of match is tough for him to play emotionally, because the rallies are short, and Mpetshi Perricard serves unbelievably well.

"When he had to move, he looked sharp, and it looked like he was returning well - he did a tremendous job in a very tricky match.

"It was a very frustrating match tactically for Novak Djokovic to play. The fact that he comes out of it as a winner is not a big surprise, but he’s looking good, having fun with the people and the crowd.

"He’s doing a little wiggle and little dance, which means he’s in a good place, and I’m sure he’s super happy being back at Roland Garros, because it’s so much easier for someone like Novak to play three out of five sets than it is to play two out of three sets."

Djokovic will now face another Frenchman - Valentin Royer - in the second round on Wednesday, and he will be hoping to jig his way all the way to the final.

Add TNT Sports as a preferred source here to enjoy more content like this.

Stream every court from the 2026 French Open exclusively live on TNT Sports and HBO Max.