Iga Swiatek Commences Roland Garros Title Defense 2024, Sets Up Naomi Osaka Showdown

The unstoppable world No. 1 had won her previous 12 matches going into the Terre Battue, having won the Mutua Madrid Open and the Internazionali BNL d’Italia back-to-back. She handled the French qualifier rather quickly, moving on under the Court Philippe-Chatrier roof in 61 minutes to set up an exciting second-round match with the former No. 1 Naomi Osaka.

Swiatek, who is 22 years old, won the Coupe Suzanne-Lenglen three times in the previous four years. In 2020, as an unseeded teenager, he made his Roland Garros debut. Since then, she has only lost once in Paris. After losing in the quarterfinals in 2021, she bounced back to win just two sets in her last two matches, defeating Coco Gauff in the 2022 final and Karolina Muchova in the 2023 final.

After going undefeated in the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix semifinals, her 2024 clay-court season got off to an unexpected start. However, she skillfully recovered to become just the third woman in history to win both Madrid and Rome in the same season, joining Serena Williams and Dinara Safina.

Like Swiatek, the overwhelming favorite to win Roland Garros a fourth time drew a qualifier who has relished her signature performance in Paris, albeit on a lesser scale. The 28-year-old Jeanjean attended Lynn University for her undergraduate studies in tennis. However, she successfully pursued her professional goals again in 2022 when, using a wild card, she upset former world No. 1 Karolina Pliskova and advanced to the third round.

Also Read: Iga Swiatek’s Dominating Victory over Aryna Sabalenka in Rome 2024

From the beginning, Swiatek showed himself to be a far more formidable opponent. The Pole won the opening set in just thirty minutes by taking advantage of all three break opportunities.

At the beginning of the second set, Jeanjean gave the Chatrier audience something to cheer about with a break of her own, but Swiatek quickly regained the upper hand, turning around a 30-0 deficit in the next game to break back. She was one game away from winning when she won ten straight points. She started the match with a strong forehand that set up three match points, which she converted with a backhand into open court.

Osaka, who is tied with Swiatek for the most major victories won, but has a poor track record on clay, is waiting for her in the second round. After overcoming Italian Lucia Bronzetti in three difficult sets on Sunday, Osaka won her first Grand Slam main draw match after becoming a mother.