World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka began her quest for a maiden Grand Slam title at the French Open by taking exactly one hour to dispatch Kamilla Rakhimova 6-1 6-0.
The Panama hats and sunglasses were stowed away and replaced by jackets and umbrellas, with short spells of rain around Roland Garros on a soggy Sunday, as Sabalenka made it safely through after opening proceedings on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
The Belarusian has vowed to watch what she eats at the home of haute cuisine this year as she bids to add a maiden title in Paris to her US and Australian Open titles after being doubled over with stomach trouble as she fell to defeat to teenager Mirra Andreeva in the last eight in 2024.
The 27-year-old said: “I’m super happy with the win today. Super happy with the level.
“It was amazing playing out there. I can’t wait to play another match on this beautiful stadium.”
Teenager Victoria Mboko is the first breakout star after reaching round two on her Grand Slam debut.
The 18-year-old from Canada, whose parents emigrated from the Democratic Republic of Congo due to political conflict before she was born, came through qualifying without dropping a set.
Ranked 333 at the start of the year, Mboko showed no sign of nerves in a 6-1 7-6 (7-4) win over New Zealander Lulu Sun, the world No 45 who beat Emma Raducanu at Wimbledon last July.
It was Mboko’s 38th win of the season and she has lost just five matches, two of which were three-set battles with top-10 players Paula Badosa and Coco Gauff.
Teenager Victoria Mboko defeated New Zealander Lulu Sun to reach the second round at Roland-Garros
Now ranked 120, Mboko’s rapid upward trajectory means she is in with a chance of qualifying directly into the Wimbledon main draw later this summer.
“I didn’t expect the whole thing, honestly,” she said. “I mean, even to be here and playing even the quallies, I was so excited to be in a Grand Slam for the first ever time.
“I remember coming here as a junior, watching the older girls play. It was such a great experience. I’m happy I experienced it in the juniors so that it kind of prepared me for the professional level.
“The whole thing is honestly kind of a surprise. I mean, now I’m here, I feel like I can do something with it and make the most of it.
Mboko will meet Eva Lys in the second round on Wednesday after the German No 1 defeated Peyton Stearns 6-0 6-3.
Nadal in tears on final farewell
Tennis great Rafael Nadal returned to Court Philippe-Chatrier, only instead of competing, he was feted by the French tennis federation for all that he accomplished on the red clay.
Roland-Garros 2025 marks two decades since Nadal won his first title here, three years since he claimed his 14th French Open title – his 22nd and final Grand Slam victory overall – and is the first to take place since he retired.
His was a dominance on the Parisian clay that is surely unsurpassed by any other athlete at any single arena, an astonishing record which reads: Played 116 matches, won 112. Of his 14 finals, he never lost one.
On an emotionally-charged evening Nadal smiled broadly and waved at the applauding, adoring crowd, which seemed to occupy just about every seat in the 15,000-capacity venue.
As a video tribute began playing on the screens, Nadal bit his lower lip before the tears began to flow as he gave his speech.
‘The Big Four’ back together
Nadal’s greatest rivals – Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray – all walked out together to join him on the court.
“We showed the world that we can fight as hard as possible, but being good colleagues and respecting each other very well. And for me, it means a lot that you are all here,” Nadal said.
“You gave me some hard times on court, honestly, but I really enjoyed pushing myself to the limit every single day to compete with all of you.”
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