Swiatek and Alcaraz Lead the Charge at the French Open
Defending champions Iga Swiatek and Carlos Alcaraz breezed through their opening matches at the French Open. Swiatek aims for a historic fourth consecutive women's title while Alcaraz smoothly advanced in the men's draw. Naomi Osaka and Taylor Fritz suffered disappointing first-round exits. Notable performances included Emma Raducanu's victory and Casper Ruud's comfortable win.
Iga Swiatek, the reigning champion, seamlessly advanced to the second round of the French Open after defeating Slovakia's Rebecca Sramkova 6-3, 6-3. Swiatek's ambition for a historic fourth straight women's title received a promising start as she continued her 22-match winning streak in Paris. Her early arrival for training on clay courts proved beneficial.
On the men's side, Carlos Alcaraz defended his title with an impressive performance against Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri, winning 6-3, 6-4, 6-2. However, fourth seed Taylor Fritz faced an early exit following a loss to Germany's Daniel Altmaier. Naomi Osaka also struggled in her first-round match, falling to Spain's Paula Badosa after a flawed performance.
Swiatek will next face Britain's Emma Raducanu, who triumphed over China's Wang Xinyu after a grueling match. In other notable men's matches, Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas secured straightforward victories to advance to the second round.
(With inputs from agencies.)
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