French Open: Maria Sharapova starts title defence with win
Maria Sharapova made a successful start to the defence of her French Open title with a 6-2 6-4 win over Estonia’s Kaia Kanepi.
The second-seeded Russian, 28, will now play compatriot Vitalia Diatchenko.
Former world number two and 2012 Wimbledon finalist Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland, seeded 14th, lost 6-2 3-6 6-1 to Germany’s Annika Beck.
In the men’s draw, fourth seed Tomas Berdych reached round two by beating Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka 6-0 7-5 6-3.
The biggest name to falter on day two was Spain’s Feliciano Lopez,with the 11th seed suffering a 6-3 7-6 (11-9) 6-3 defeat by Teymuraz Gabashvili.
Double Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka, seeded 27, marked her return to Roland Garros after missing last year’s event with a foot injury with a 6-2 6-1 win over Spain’s Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor.