10 Americans took to court on Day 1 of Roland Garros.
Venus Williams, Bethanie Mattek-Sands, Madison Brengle and Shelby Rogers won, while Julia Boserup, Christina McHale, Louisa Chirico, Amanda Anisimova and Tennys Sandgren lost. Steve Johnson’s bout was suspended in the fourth set due to darkness.
Petra Kvitova d. Julia Boserup 6-3, 6-2
The first match on Court Philippe Chatrier was all about the return of Petra Kvitova, and it was a delight. But the match was also a milestone for 25-year-old American Julia Boserup, as it was her first main-draw match at Roland Garros. In case you haven’t already heard, the Czech dominated. Kvitova held her serve in the first game, broke Boserup’s in the second and never looked back.
Read our full report of the Kvitova match here.
Svetlana Kuznetsova d. Christina McHale 7-5, 6-4
2009 French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova outplayed New Jersey’s Christina McHale on Court Suzanne Lenglen, getting out to a 3-0 lead and winning the first set 7-5 by holding to love on an ace. The Russian then took the second set 6-4.
Venus Williams d. Qiang Wang 6-4, 7-6(3)
Impressive battling by Venus Williams to beat #50 Wang Qiang 6-4, 7-6(3). She trailed 2-4 in first set and then 3-5 in the second. #rg17
— Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) May 28, 2017
Williams’s next match will be against Kurumi Nara, who defeated 15-year-old American wild card Amanda Anisimova 3-6, 7-5, 6-4. Anisimova showed great promise in her match against Nara, and is definitely one for the future.
Bethanie Mattek-Sands d. Evgeniya Rodina 7-5, 6-2
On Court 3, qualifier and Olympic gold medalist Bethanie Mattek-Sands needed only two sets to get past world No. 80 Evgeniya Rodina.
Jelena Ostapenko d. Louisa Chirico 4-6, 6-3, 6-2
21-year-old Louisa Chirico played much of the first set from behind; rising star Jelena Ostapenko broke in the third game for 2-1 lead. Chirico later evened the set at 4 and consolidated for a 5-4 lead, forcing Ostapenko to serve to stay in the frame. With Chirico having two set points, it began to drizzle. Then Ostapenko missed a short forehand into the net, handing Chirico the set. Play was promptly suspended, though for just minutes.
Because of the break’s brevity, there was no warmup when play resumed. Chirico had to to serve cold, and was broken at love. After five more breaks of serve, Ostapenko took the second set 6-3, and went on to win the deciding third set 6-2.
Steve Johnson leads Yuichi Sugita 6-3, 6-3, 6(4)-7, 2-4
One of only two American men in play on Friday, Steve Johnson had a two-sets-to-one lead, but trailed 2-4 in the fourth when play was suspended.
Day 1 Ends: the men's 1R between Sugita & No.25 Johnson has been suspended due to darkness at 3-6, 3-6, 7-6(4), 4-2* #RG17
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 28, 2017
Madison Brengle d. Julia Goerges 1-6, 6-3, 13-11
This one was a marathon. After getting breadsticked in the first set, Brengle, who holds the honor of being the only player to record a win over Serena Williams in 2017, won the second 6-3. The third set got to 6-6, and there is no deciding-set tiebreak in the French Open. So they played until someone won by two, which turned out to be Brengle at 13-11.
https://twitter.com/Gibbsyyyy/status/868796432714788864
Shelby Rogers d. Marina Erakovic 7-6(4), 6-4
On Court 17, Charleston and Strasbourg quarterfinalist Shelby Rogers exchanged breaks with Kiwi Marina Erakovic, sending the first set to a tiebreak, in which Rogers overcame a 1-4 deficit to win 7-4. Rogers then won the second set 6-4.
Mikhail Kukushkin d. Tennys Sandgren 6-2, 6-1, 6-4
Tennys Sandgren, who won the USTA’s Roland Garros Wild Card Challenge earlier in May, played only his second tour-level match on Friday, falling to Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin in straight sets.
