Paris, May 26: Defending champion Coco Gauff began her French Open campaign in commanding fashion with a straight-sets victory over fellow American Taylor Townsend to storm into the second round at Roland Garros on Tuesday.
The world No. 4 recovered from an early setback to register a 6-4, 6-0 win in just one hour and 20 minutes on Court Philippe-Chatrier, maintaining her perfect record of reaching the second round in all seven of her French Open appearances.
Townsend made an aggressive start and broke Gauff in the opening game, threatening to take firm control of the first set. However, Gauff quickly regained momentum after surviving another break point opportunity and went on to dominate the remainder of the contest.The defending champion won 11 of the final 12 games, completely overpowering Townsend with her consistency and baseline control, especially in a one-sided second set where her opponent struggled to keep pace.Gauff will next face Egypt’s Mayar Sherif as she continues her bid to retain the French Open title.
In the men’s draw, Daniil Medvedev suffered yet another disappointing early exit at Roland Garros after losing to Australian wildcard Adam Walton in a dramatic five-set battle.
Walton defeated the former US Open champion 6-2, 1-6, 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 to secure the biggest win of his career and his first victory over a top-10 player. (IANS)
