Favorites Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek cruised into the second spherical of their respective French Open campaigns Monday.
The Spaniard was off with a commanding 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win over Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri, showcasing his trademark mix of velocity, energy and composure.
The defending champion wasted little time seeing off the world No. 310 on the Suzanne Lenglen court docket on the Roland Garros stadium, establishing a gathering with Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan.
“It was really solid, the first round of a Grand Slam is never easy, especially coming here as the defending champion,” Alcaraz mentioned to an almost packed court docket after his victory.
“I started well and kept a good pace during the match, I tried to be focused on my game, to get a good rhythm. I’m really proud of my start here at Roland Garros.”
Alcaraz shortly took the measure of his opponent and broke for 3-1 within the opening set as he dusted each nook of the court docket, setting the stage for a cushty eighth straight win on the French Open.
Zeppieri supplied extra resistance within the second set, however Alcaraz snatched the decisive break within the seventh sport and by no means regarded again.
He wrapped it up on his second match level when Zeppieri netted a service return.
Meanwhile, within the girls’s competitors, Iga Swiatek entered the match on a close to yearlong trophy drought however confirmed indicators of kind in a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Slovakia’s Rebecca Sramkova.
Her struggles for the reason that final of her 4 French Open titles have been properly documented, however she broke her Forty second-ranked opponent 4 instances in a robust show.
The five-time Grand Slam champion’s outstanding win-loss file within the match now stands at 36-2.
“I knew I needed to stay proactive and try to use my weapons. I’m happy with my performance and it was a solid match,” mentioned Swiatek, who additionally beat Sramkova within the second spherical of this yr’s Australian Open.
Swiatek, who has dropped to fifth on this planet rankings, will subsequent face former U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu after the Briton defeated China’s Wang Xinyu 7-5, 4-6, 6-3.
Raducanu is enjoying on the French Open for the primary time since a second-round exit on her debut in 2022.
Former Wimbledon winner Elena Rybakina battled previous Argentinian qualifier Julia Riera 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, two days after lifting her first WTA title since April 2024 in Strasbourg.
Source: www.dailysabah.com