PARIS: Spain’s Garbine Muguruza serves the ball to Italy’s Francesca Schiavone during their tennis match at the Roland Garros 2017 French Open yesterday in Paris. — AFP

PARIS: Reigning French Open champion Garbine Muguruza breezed into the second round, while Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic prepared to launch their title bids later yesterday. Muguruza’s middling form this season saw her arrive in Paris with just three wins on clay, but the Spaniard dispatched 2010 Roland Garros champion Francesca Schiavone 6-2, 6-4. The fourth seed will meet Estonia’s Anett Kontaveit for a place in round three as Schiavone, who turns 37 in June, bid farewell to the tournament for the final time ahead of her retirement at the end of the year. “I cannot believe in the first round we have two ex-champions.

Not only that but Francesca is a legend and I was very excited to play on Philippe Chatrier court with her,” said Muguruza. “I like to take my chances and be aggressive and today that wasn’t going to be different.” Muguruza defeated Serena Williams to win her maiden Grand Slam a year ago, but the 23-year-old needs to return to the final to stay in the world’s top 10. “I know I played good here before, but that doesn’t make me extra confident this year. I have to play well to earn that confidence again,” she said. Muguruza lost to Kontaveit at Stuttgart in April, although the Estonian is through to the second round of a Grand Slam for just the second time. Canadian fifth seed Milos Raonic raced into round two with a routine 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Steve Darcis of Belgium. Raonic, whose best run at the French Open came when he made the 2014 quarter-finals, fired 15 aces and 44 winners to book a meeting with Mikhail Youzhny of Russia or Brazil’s Rogerio Dutra Silva.

NADAL, DJOKOVIC IN ACTION

Nadal and Djokovic will set off ahead of a semifinal collision course, with the former bidding to become the first player in the Open era to win 10 titles at any Grand Slam event. Three clay-court titles at Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid suggest the Spaniard is poised to end a three-year drought at the majors, but the Spaniard is wary of mercurial French Benoit Paire. “He is not an opponent you want to play against in the first round. A player with big talent. Great serve, great hands and fantastic backhand,” said Nadal. “He’s a dangerous opponent. I need to play my best.” Djokovic completed a career Grand Slam with his maiden Roland Garros title in 2016, but the Serb then suffered a drastic dip in performances.

The world number two is hoping to draw inspiration from new coach Andre Agassi, the 1999 French Open champion, as he launches his defence against Marcel Granollers of Spain. “You start a tournament from the same line with everyone else. You fight for the trophy, as everybody does. That’s the way I approach it,” said Djokovic. Rising German star Alexander Zverev, seeded ninth, begins his campaign against veteran Spaniard Fernando Verdasco. The 20-year-old Zverev defeated Djokovic in Rome a week ago to become the first player born in the 1990s to land a Masters title. Jelena Jankovic’s 54th consecutive Grand Slam maiden draw appearance was a fleeting one as the threetime French Open semi-finalist was consigned to a first-round exit by Dutch qualifier Richel Hogenkamp. — AFP