Elina Svitolina overcame an erratic Venus Williams 6-3 6-3 to win her first clay match of 2019 and reach the second round of Roland Garros.
The Ukrainian produced some high-quality returning as she got a confidence-boosting win over Venus Williams to reach the second round.
Some struggles with knee problems have seen Svitolina not have many matches on the clay in the lead up to Paris but this was a much-needed win.
In the next round Svitolina will play Kateryna Kozlova after her win over Bernarda Pera.
Both players struggled to dominate behind their serve early on as there was some high-quality hitting on return. Venus was uncharacteristically erratic behind her serve as the forehand was very loose when Svitolina pressured it.
Eventually Svitolina was the one who found confidence on her first serve as she produced a crucial hold for 5-3 as she looked re-energised.
Some great forehands sealed a fourth break of the set as Venus continued to struggle with her accuracy and as a result conceded the opening set.
The second set was better from the American as she continued to put Svitolina’s second serve under pressure and finally managed a hold of serve.
At 3-1 up it looked like Venus would dominate the second set but that was far from the case as Svitolina produced some of her best tennis in a few months.
Some fantastic returning and clean hitting saw the former Roland Garros quarter-finalist turn on the accelerators as a streak of five games sealed the match.
Smiles for Svitolina 😄@ElinaSvitolina notches her first win on the clay of the season taking down Venus Williams 6-3 6-3.#RG19 pic.twitter.com/1P1LOSTkN4
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 26, 2019
After the match Svitolina said it was a tough match and is happy that her knee is getting better, “So you have to expect to play tough opponents and for me it was amazing to play against Venus and to play such a good match. So I’m happy with my first round,” she explained to Eurosport after the match.
“I try to take it one day at a time. We are trying to do everything within our power to recover, make it stronger and be ready for each match. Luckily during grand slams you have some time off. I will try to recover and be ready for me second round.”
A positive match for Svitolina, who will look to be a contender for the title and overcome a rough part of the draw with compatriot Kateryna Kozlova awaiting next.
Stephens Advances
Meanwhile another potential contender for the title, Sloane Stephens, progressed to the second round with a 6-3 7-6(4) win over Misaki Doi.
The American overcame a tricky second set to progress as last year’s finalist looks to go one round further this year. Next up is Sara Sorribes Tormo, who beat Alison Van Uytvanck 6-1 5-7 6-2.
