While Venus Williams won her first-round match in a record 20th appearance at the French Open on Sunday, Angelique Kerber became the first No. 1 seed to lose at Roland Garros in the Open era.
In a record 20th appearance at the French Open, Venus Williams eased into the second round with a straight-set victory over Qiang Wang of China.
Williams, who is seeded 10th, saved two set points to win 6-4,7-6 (3) . The 36-year-old American will play Kurumi Nara of Japan in the next round.
Not as fortunate was Angelique Kerber, who became the first women’s No. 1 seed to lose in the French Open’s first round in the Open era.
Kerber lost 6-2,6-2 to 40th-ranked Ekaterina Makarova of Russia. Makarova broke Kerber’s serve twice in the opening set and did so again in the second, racing to a 3-0 lead.
Kerber appeared to get back into the match when she recovered one break but the German immediately dropped her serve again. There was another rapid exchange of breaks before Makarova sealed the result on her first match point with a forehand down the line after recovering from 40-0 down.
Kerber now has just two wins from her last four tournaments.
The 90th-ranked Nara defeated American teenager Amanda Anisimova, who was making her Grand Slam debut after reaching the junior final here last year, 3-6,7-5,6-4.
The 15-year-old from New Jersey appeared to be on course for victory when she went 4-2 up in the second set but Nara fought back.
Anisimova clawed her way back from 4-1 down in the decider but Nara clinched the victory on her first match point when her opponent hit a forehand wide.
Anisimova, who is 262nd in the rankings, became the first player born in 2001 to earn a spot in a Grand Slam main draw when she claimed the U. S. Tennis Association’s wild card for the French Open.
Former French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova defeated Christina McHale of the United States in straight sets.
The eighth-seeded Kuznetsova, who won the tournament in 2009, triumphed 7-5,6-4, sealing the result on the last of her three match points.
The oldest man in the singles draw, 38-year-old Ivo Karlovic, prevailed over one of the youngest, teenager Stefanos Tsitsipas, 7-6 (5) , 7-5,6-4.
Sixth-seeded Dominic Thiem, who reached the men’s semifinals last year, comfortably beat Bernard Tomic 6-4,6-0,6-2.
The 23-year-old Thiem is an outside favorite to win the tournament. He is the only player to have beaten Rafael Nadal on clay this season.
