Men’s top seed Jannik Sinner of Italy and women’s reigning champion Iga Swiatek of Poland claimed opening-round victories at the French Open on Monday.
The 23-year-old Sinner cruised past Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech 6-4, 6-3, 7-5. Although Rinderknech recorded more aces, the Italian secured the win with a consistent serving performance.
“First round matches, they are never easy. I’m very happy with how I handled the situation, especially in the third set. Coming through in straight sets means a lot. We have played each other a couple of times before, so we know each other a little bit. He is an amazing player,” said Sinner, who will face veteran Frenchman Richard Gasquet in the second round.
Second seed Carlos Alcaraz of Spain defeated Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri 6-3, 6-4, 6-2, while Chinese hopeful Bu Yunchaokete fell to Austrian qualifier Filip Misolic in a four-set battle, 5-7, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (4), 6-1.
Four-time champion Swiatek eased past Slovakia’s Rebecca Sramkova 6-3, 6-3.
“For sure it wasn’t an easy match especially because she played with a lot of freedom and I felt like she was going for her shots, especially the forehands down the line. I knew I needed to stay proactive and try to create and use my weapons and that’s what I did,” said Swiatek.
The Pole will next face 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu, after the 22-year-old Briton overcame China’s Wang Xinyu 7-5, 4-6, 6-3.
Following the first-round exits of Bu, Wang and Yuan Yue, Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen remains the only Chinese player left in the singles draw. She will meet Colombia’s Emiliana Arango in the women’s second round.
Yuan is scheduled to team up with Lulu Sun of New Zealand in the women’s doubles first round on Tuesday.
