Elena Rybakina dropped the first game of her first match at the 2024 Roland Garros without winning a single point, but she bounced back strongly to win the match in two sets.
A rainy day in Paris was kicked off by Rybakina taking on Greet Minnen in the first round of the French Open. Rybakina missed the Italian Open but made a strong impression in the French capital, even though the start was a bit shaky.
She dropped her first service game without winning a point but bounced back strongly soon after that. Minnen held for the 2-0 lead but then lost six straight games to drop the opening set 6-2.
The Kazakhstani just needed a bit of time to settle in, and once she did, she overwhelmed the Belgian from the baseline. The fourth seed blasted 21 winners in that opening set, which paints a clear picture of what happened on the court.
Minnen serving only 40% on her first serve contributed to that because she was a sitting duck on her second serve winning only 4 of 18 points.
The condition favored Rybakina greatly due to the roof being closed, but even if it wasn't, she likely would have cruised in that one, being the better player. She continued her game streak in the second set by jumping out to a 3-0 lead, which meant nine games in a row won.
The Belgian served better in the second set but it didn't really matter that much as Rybakina was just too good. She even ventured to the net quite often, where she did pretty well.
Overall, it was just a very solid display with great shot-making and a pretty good movement. She's had some physical issues this year but looked really strong in this match. The final score was 6-2, 6-3 as she moved on to the second round.
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