Two-time finalist Ruud into French Open second round

PARIS: Twice former runner-up Casper Ruud eased into the French Open second round on Monday with a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win over Spanish qualifier Albert Ramos-Vinolas.

Ruud captured the biggest title of his career on clay in Madrid earlier this month and has twice reached the final at Roland Garros, in 2022 and 2023.

The Norwegian seventh seed goes on to face Portugal’s Nuno Borges for a place in the last 32.

 China’s Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen beat former French Open runner-up Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-4, 6-3 in a tricky first-round assignment on Sunday.

Roland Garros pays tribute to retired ‘King of Clay’ Nadal

The eighth seed is returning to Paris for the first time since winning gold at last year’s Olympics.

She will play Alexandra Eala of the Philippines or Colombia’s Emiliana Arango in the second round.

Additionally, Roland Garros will pay tribute to its greatest champion with a ceremony for the retired Rafael Nadal on Sunday, while Aryna Sabalenka got her French Open campaign up and running with an emphatic victory.

Nadal, the record 14-time champion on the Paris clay, retired from tennis last November after an illustrious career.

He returns to Court Philippe Chatrier a year after suffering a first-round exit at the hands of Alexander Zverev in what proved to be his final French Open.

The Spaniard finished with a remarkable 112-4 win-loss record at Roland Garros, dominating the tournament since winning the title on his debut in 2005.