Sebastian Baez, the No. 3 seed, brushed aside home hopeful Dominik Koepfer with a 6-2, 6-3 victory. Baez is seeking his third clay-court title of the season and second at the 500 level, following triumphs in Rio de Janeiro and Santiago.
Fifth seed Arthur Fils needed to work harder in his opener. The 20-year-old rallied to beat Jaume Munar, 5-7, 6-3, 6-1, in two hours and 11 minutes. Fils reached the semifinals here last year after ousting top seed Casper Ruud in straight sets (WATCH ABOVE).
Seventh seed Luciano Darderi and eighth seed Zhang Zhizhen also advanced. Darderi overcame lucky loser Nick Hardt, 6-1, 2-6, 6-0. Zhang eased past Thiago Seyboth Wild, 7-6 (6), 6-0.
Rune, Baez, Fils, Darderi and Zhang are all slated to represent their nations at the upcoming Paris Olympics, held at Roland Garros.
