(May 25, 2025) Top seed Aryna Sabalenka began her quest for a first Roland Garros title with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Kamilla Rakhimova to begin Sunday’s play on Court Philippe-Chatrier in Paris.
Sabalenka has a tour-leading three titles this year, including her third Madrid trophy last month, and her overall record is now 35-6. She will next face Jil Teichmann.
Sabalenka hit 30 winners, including five aces, with only 17 unforced errors.
Last year’s finalist, No. 4 seed Jasmine Paolini, recovered from a break down in the third set to Yuan Yue 6-1, 4-6, 6-3.
“It was tough,” Paolini said. “I won quite easy the first set but then she started to play better. A bit of emotions came out.”
“I was then 3-2 down with a break but I did it. Hopefully I will play better then next round. We will see,” said the Italian.
Zheng Qinwen, the Olympic gold medalist in Paris last year, made a return to Court Philippe-Chatrier at Roland Garros by defeating Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. The No. 8 seed avenged a previous loss to Pavlyuchenkova and extended her perfect first-round record at the French Open to 4-0.
Canadian teen Victoria Mboko made her major tournament debut with a 6-1, 7-6 (4) win over 2024 Wimbledon quarterfinalist Lulu Sun. Coming into the tournament as a qualifier, this is the 18-year-old’s first year on the pro tour.
“This does, obviously, feel really quick for me. Although it feels quick, I feel like I’m also adapting very quickly. I want to be in this level,” said Mboko to media. “To adapt really fast is really important to me. The more I feel like I make it seem normal to me, the more normal it’s going to be in these tournaments.”
Germany’s Eva Lys was a 6-0, 6-3 upset winner over No. 28 seed Peyton Stearns. She’ll fave Mboko next.
A pair of seeds lost on Sunday – No. 26 Marta Kostyuk and No. 28 Peyton Stearns.
