The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Williams works off the rust in first round win
US star powers through but Isabelle Wallace suffers debut loss
Isabelle Wallace’s French Open debut ended in a heavy defeat at Roland Garros yesterday.
The 21-year-old from Inverness lost in straight sets 6-1, 6-0 to world number 46 Alison van Uytvanck in her first round tie.
Wallace, who is ranked 248th in the world rankings, had secured her place in Paris after winning a wild-card in her adopted country Australia, where she has been based for six years, but was no match for the Belgian.
Meanwhile, Serena Williams made an eyecatching return to the grand slam scene with victory over Kristyna Pliskova in the French Open first round.
The former world number one had not played a major tournament since winning a 23rd title at the 2017 Australian Open, having given birth to her daughter in September.
Her first grand slam action in over 15 months had the Paris fashionistas in a whirl as she walked on court in a black bodysuit with a bright pink belt.
She said: “I feel like a warrior in it, like a warrior princess, kind of.
“I’m always living in a fantasy world. I always wanted to be a superhero, and it’s kind of my way of being a superhero. I feel like a superhero when I wear it.”
Williams may be short of match sharpness and the footwork is not quite there yet, but the 36-year-old’s serve remains a formidable weapon as she took the first set after a tie-break.
The pair exchanged breaks in the second set with Williams grabbing the decisive one in the seventh game before sealing a 7-6, (7-4), 6-4 victory - not bad going for someone playing her first match on clay in two years.
“Two years is a really long time but I have trained hard on clay and feel good,” she said afterwards.
“I’m happy to have won a match here and I’m just taking it one day at a time.”
Williams, who will play Australia’s Ashleigh Barty in the next round, added: “Kristyna played really, really well.
“I don’t know how many aces I saw during the match.
“I think there’s to be a donation to charity for each ace served, so both of us helped.”
Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza got the better of Svetlana Kuznetsova in a first-round meeting of two former champions.
After a 90-minute rain interruption at 5-5 in the first set Muguruza, the 2016 winner, blew 2009 champion Kuznetsova away in the tie-break and went on to win 7-6 (7-0), 6-2.
Muguruza said: “I feel very encouraged by this kind of match. She has a good technique and good vision of the game.”
Caroline Garcia of France, the seventh seed, took just 58 minutes to dispatch China’s Yingying Duan 6-1 6-0.
“I feel like a warrior in it, like a warrior princess. I feel like a superhero”