Paris, France (TSN) – Second-seeded American Lindsay Davenport, three-time champion Monica Seles of the United States and five-time titlist Steffi Graf of Germany were among Tuesday’s first-round winners at the French Open Tennis Championships.
Davenport, the 1998 U.S. Open champion in search of her second career grand slam title, made easy 6-3, 6-1 work of Jane Chi.
Seles, seeded third this year, dispatched Fang Li 6-2, 6-4. Seles was last year’s runner-up to Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario, who claimed her third title at this event.
The sixth-seeded Graf pasted Maggie Maleeva 6-2, 6-0.
Also, eighth-seeded Mary Pierce defeated Joannette Kruger 6-4, 6-3; number-nine Nathalie Tauziat knocked off Amelie Cocheteux 6-4, 6-3; 11th-seeded Patty Schnyder outlasted Corina Morariu 3-6, 6-3, 8- 6; while number-16 Julie Halard-Decugis beat Karina Habsudova 1-6, 6- 4, 6-1.
The day’s lone upset saw Ai Sugiyama bounce 14th-seeded Amanda Coetzer 7-5, 6-1.
In addition, Jennifer Capriati moved on to the second round with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Virginia Ruano Pascual; Conchita Martinez got past Cara Black 2-6, 6-3, 6-3; and Anna Kournikova pounded Tamarine Tanasugarn 6-3, 6-3.
Other unseeded winners in Tuesday’s play included: Elena Likhovtseva, Gala Leon Garcia, Lilia Osterloh, Amy Frazier, Anna Smashnova, Asa Carlsson, Adriana Serra-Zanetti, Els Callens, Paola Suarez, Elena Wagner, Andrea Glass, Cristina Torrens-Valero and Raluca Sandu.
Meanwhile, Maria Antonia Sanchez Lorenzo, Nicole Arendt, Fabiola Zuluaga Ines Gorrochategui, Jana Nejedly, Lubomira Bacheva, Silvia Farina and Justine Henin all posted victories in first-round action.