Defending champion Iga Swiatek breezes through opening match at French Open
Swiatek dispatched French wild card Leolia Jeanjean 6-1 6-2 and set up a stunning second-round match against Naomi Osaka
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Your support makes all the difference.Iga Swiatek made a flying start to her bid for a third successive Roland Garros crown.
The world number one from Poland spent exactly one hour on Court Philippe Chatrier as she dispatched French wild card Leolia Jeanjean 6-1 6-2.
Swiatek is bidding to become the first woman to win three straight French Opens since Justine Henin in 2007.
She arrived in Paris in fine form having won back-to-back titles on clay in Madrid and Rome.
“it feels like home here,” she said. “Hopefully, I’m going to be here as long as possible.
“These last tournaments gave me a lot and I managed to play tennis in any conditions and under any circumstances. Every tournament is different and the next chapter.”
Swiatek’s Roland Garros record now stands at 29 wins from 31 matches. Not quite Rafael Nadal levels, but not bad for a 22-year-old.
Asked if she feels like the ‘Queen of Clay’, Swiatek added: “I think it’s too early.
“I’m really proud of my achievements and this has always been my favourite surface. I will be watching Rafa’s match.
“I’m just at the beginning but I will try to take some lessons from him on being a good person and a good player.”
Swiatek faces former world number one Naomi Osaka in an eye-catching second-round match.
“Nowadays in the women’s draw you can play grand slam champions early in the tournament,” she added. “It is pretty tricky because you know these players are really experienced.
“They also achieved many great things. So they have bigger kind of belief, I would say, as well.”
Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova was also largely untroubled, the Czech beating Spain’s Rebeka Masarova 6-1 6-3.
Tunisian Ons Jabeur, beaten by Vondrousova in last year’s SW19 final, eased through 6-3 6-2 against American wild card Sachia Vickery, avenging a Roland Garros defeat by the same player in 2018.
US Open champion Coco Gauff, beaten by Swiatek in the final in Paris two years ago, thumped Russian Julia Avdeeva 6-1 6-1 in just 53 minutes.
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