Guardian

THIRD seed Victoria Azarenka made up for lost time with a comfortable win over Elena Vesnina in the first round of the French Open.

The Australian Open champion had been due to start her campaign on Tuesday but was held up by poor weather in Paris.

Vesnina was a potentially tricky opponent but Azarenka dominated the first set and ultimately proved the stronger in the second to come through 6-1 6-4.

Azarenka said, “I felt good. It was important to finally start the tournament. I felt like I’m one of the last ones to start. It was a long wait, but I think performance wise it was a good match. It was a quality match. Elena is a very tough opponent.

“I was actually surprised she wasn’t seeded at the tournament and we know each other pretty well, so it was important to start from the beginning with a determination and a good focus because she’s a very dangerous opponent, she has a very flashy game.”

Azarenka faces the prospect of seven matches in 11 days if she is to win the title.