Sabalenka, Zheng make fast starts

World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka sounded an early warning siren to her French Open rivals when she dismantled Kamilla Rakhimova in the opening round while fans braved sharp spells of rain ahead of a special salute to Rafa Nadal on Sunday.

China’s Zheng Qinwen followed Sabalenka into the second round, returning to the venue of her Olympics

gold last year and thumping 2021 runner-up Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.

With the day session on Court Philippe Chatrier wrapped up, Roland Garros hummed with anticipation as fans gathered for the evening showpiece to honour retired Spanish great Nadal at the site of his 14 French Open triumphs.

Three-time Grand Slam champion Sabalenka ensured everything was on schedule as she cranked up her huge serve and forehand in front of a sparse crowd under the roof of the main showcourt to blow away her opponent 6-1 6-0 in an hour.

The Belarusian top seed, who is bidding for her maiden French Open title, was delighted with the clinical performance that extended her winning streak in the opening round of Grand Slams to 18 before she paid homage to Nadal on his big day. “He was an inspiration for me, the hard work he put in is incredible. He’s a nice guy and he worked super hard to achieve everything he did,” Sabalenka said.