The Eiffel Tower was still standing, the River Seine was flowing away to the sea, the traffic clogged the Peripherique and Rafa Nadal still ruled Roland Garros on Tuesday.
To all intents and purposes it was a normal day at the French Open as Nadal claimed victory number 67 since making his debut in the event in 2005.
It felt a little different, though, as the soon-to-be 29-year-old walked on to Court Philippe Chatrier, the rectangle of red clay that has been the stage for his nine titles in a decade of unprecedented domination.
He risked on every single ball. That’s the way tennis is going. Younger, aggressive, hitting the ball stronger and quicker, going for the winners all the time
Such has been Nadal’s malaise this year, with clay-court defeats piling up from Monte Carlo to Rome, the Spaniard arrived in Paris only second favourite to claim a record-extending 10th title.
Tasked with providing the first test of Nadal’s supposed fragile confidence was French teenager Quentin Halys, a wild card making his grand slam debut.
He did just that, pushing 14-times grand slam champion Nadal hard before succumbing 6-3, 6-3, 6-4.
Nadal often takes time to get fully into his stride at Roland Garros so Tuesday’s one-hour, 50-minute workout offered few clues over the health of his game.
His racquet was equipped with computer technology, meaning he can download statistics for later analysis.
