<p>World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka overpowered Russian teenager Erika Andreeva in straight sets to reach the French Open second round on Tuesday.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The Australian Open champion, a semi-finalist at Roland Garros in 2023, won 6-1, 6-2 against her 19-year-old opponent under the roof of Court Philippe Chatrier after 68 minutes.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Power-packed win</h2>
<p>Sabalenka fired 27 winners past the 100th-ranked Andreeva and broke serve five times in a dominant display and goes on to face either Irene Burillo Escorihuela of Spain or Japan&rsquo;s Moyuka Uchijima. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m trying to do well on clay, it is tough conditions here but I enjoy playing here and I&rsquo;m just trying to bring my best tennis every time&mdash;whatever the surface,&rdquo; said Sabalenka.</p>
<p>Sabalenka has made at least the last four at her past six Grand Slams and is expected to be Iga Swiatek&rsquo;s toughest rival in the Pole&rsquo;s bid for a fourth French Open title.&nbsp;</p>
<p><img title="Elena Rybakina and Casper Ruud " src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2024/may/aarya-pic-may-b_e.jpg" alt="Elena Rybakina and Casper Ruud " width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>Elena Rybakina and Casper Ruud</em></strong>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Heavy rain caused play on the outside, uncovered courts to be delayed by five hours and by 6 pm local time only nine of the scheduled 40 matches had been completed. Swiatek defeated Sabalenka in the finals of Madrid and Rome in the build-up to the French Open.</p>
<p>Elena Rybakina powered into the French Open second round with a straight-sets victory over Belgian Greet Minnen on Tuesday.&nbsp;</p>
<p>The former Wimbledon champion wrapped up a 6-2, 6-3 success in only 73 minutes and will next face either three-time Grand Slam champion.</p>
<p>Angelique Kerber or Dutchwoman Arantxa Rus. &ldquo;Really happy to be back and compete here,&rdquo; said Rybakina, who withdrew ahead of the third round last year due to illness. Kazakh World No. 4 Rybakina is the only player to defeat tournament favourite Swiatek on clay this season, in the Stuttgart semi-finals in April.</p>
<h2>Comfortable win for Ruud</h2>
<p>Norway&rsquo;s Casper Ruud started his bid for a maiden title, after final defeats in each of the past two years, with a comfortable win against Brazilian qualifier Felipe Meligeni Alves.&nbsp;</p>
<p>World No. 7 Ruud, who won clay-court titles in Barcelona and Geneva in the build-up to Roland Garros, cruised to a 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 victory and will next face either Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain or Monegasque qualifier Valentin Vacherot. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s great to be back here at Roland Garros,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Hopefully I can make it another good year here.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p>
<p>Ruud was beaten in straight sets by Novak Djokovic in last year&rsquo;s final following a one-sided loss to Rafael Nadal in the 2022 showpiece. He also lost the 2022 US Open final to Carlos Alcaraz.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Cornet cries watching Rafa</h2>
<p>Frenchwoman Alize Cornet&rsquo;s career ended with a straight-sets defeat by Zheng Qinwen in her record-extending 69th consecutive Grand Slam appearance. Cornet was no match for China&rsquo;s Australian Open runner-up Zheng, losing 6-2, 6-1. &ldquo;I already cried yesterday watching Rafa,&rdquo; said a tearful Cornet after seeing Nadal lose what was likely his last match at the French Open on Monday.&nbsp;</p>
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World No. 2 registers 6-1, 6-2 win over Russian teen Erika Andreeva; World No. 7 Casper Ruud enters Round Two

Aryna Sabalenka storms ahead

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Aryna Sabalenka storms ahead

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