Svitolina rolls her winning ways into the French Open

Elina Svitolina celebrates her win over Martina Trevisan at the French Open.

Elina Svitolina coasted through her opening round with a beautiful performance at the French Open Monday. The Ukrainian came off her title win two days ago to take down 2022 semifinalist Martina Trevisan in straight sets 6-2, 6-2 on Simone Mathieu Court on the grounds of Roland Garros.

The Ukrainian came off her second title win in Strasbourg, setting herself to do well on the courts in Paris. Svitolina continued to hunt down a maiden slam and hoped to have the moxie as a mother. The 28-year-old had a big task to start the tournament against Trevisan, who made it to last year’s semifinal. The Italian didn’t do well at Madrid, Rome, or Rabat, but the 29-year-old would more than remember her skills to surpass her personal best.

The Ukrainian opened the match that put the two on a pace of service holds through four games. Svitolina held again in the fifth, working hard to produce a break off Trevisan in the sixth for a two-game margin. The 28-year-old consolidated her early victories with a hold in the seventh to play against the Italian’s service for the set.

Trevisan committed a double fault on the second point that soon gave Svitolina three set points. The 29-year-old scored a winner to save one and watched the Ukrainian drop another. She sealed up the first set on an unforced error from Trevisan to take it all in 37 minutes. The 26th seed made three double faults that opened the door to allow Svitolina to dictate.

The Ukrainian opened scoring in the second, taking the challenges from the Italian and holding serve. She battled in the second game to earn a big break, going on to consolidate her efforts with a service hold in the third. Trevisan got into the set in the fourth, keeping Svitolina back on serve, but fell back three games as the 28-year-old capped another service game. The Italian etched another win in the sixth, cutting into Svitolina, who was not concerned.

She tallied a fifth win in the seventh, giving Trevisan a point before preparing to take the match. Forcing errors from the Italian helped Svitolina inch her way into position for match point. The 28-year-old smashed the final point in front of the net to finish her day in one hour and ten minutes.

“It’s extremely special for me to get the first win of the grand slam at Roland Garros,” said Svitolina after her match. “It was a great one for me today. I played really solid, and Martina is a tough opponent, so I knew I had to bring my best game today, and it actually happened. I had a lot of confidence after winning Strasbourg last week. I had to be quick to regroup and be ready for today.”

She’ll save all the energy she has left in the tank to prepare for her second-round match against Storm Hunter of Australia, who won her opening match in three sets.