Ons Jabeur and Iga Swiatek stroll into French Open second round

Ons Jabeur started her French Open campaign with a comfortable victory over wild card Sachia Vickery on Monday while world No 1 Iga Swiatek also eased into the second round at Roland Garros.

Eighth seed Jabeur has endured an injury-hit 2024 and was bundled out in the second round of the season-opening major when she was hammered 6-0, 6-2 by teenage debutant Mirra Andreeva in less than an hour at the Australian Open.

In the run-up to Slam No 2 of the year, Jabeur reached the quarter-final in Madrid – where she suffered a third-set collapse against Madison Keys – which was followed by a disappointing opening-round exit in Rome to Sofia Kenin.

Facing an American opponent for the third match in a row, Jabeur made no mistake on the Paris clay. The 29-year-old quickly racked up a 3-0 lead, but Vickery reduced the gap with a break of her own, only to hand the momentum back to the former Wimbledon [2022 and 2023] and US Open [2022] runner-up.

The Tunisian closed out the opening set, even as the roof closed over Court Philippe Chatrier due to rain, before taking control of the second as No 124-ranked Vickery struggled to make an impact against the 2023 quarter-finalist who eased to a 6-3, 6-2 victory in 81 minutes.

“I aim for a deep run,” said Jabeur, who will face Anhelina Kalinina or Camila Osorio in the second round. “I did a wonderful preparation. I practised a lot, and I never dropped a set during practice sessions.

“I hope that I will see that again on the major courts, such as Philippe Chatrier, and I hope to get the upper hand every time. But I will see it point after point, ball after ball, game after game, and we'll see.”

Strong start from Ons Jabeur