French Open 2019: Svitolina sees off Venus Williams in blockbuster first round

Svitolina, who was just two years old when Williams made her first Roland Garros appearance 22 years ago, had not won a match on clay in 2019 but will have received a much-needed confidence boost after recording a 6-3 6-3 win over the veteran.

The first set was a frenetic affair. After trading holds to love, there were six breaks in the subsequent seven games, with Svitolina claiming four of them to edge ahead.

Williams struck back at the start of the second, breaking the Svitolina serve twice early on to go 3-1 ahead. However, it was then that Svitolina came to life, reeling off some wonderful winners to claim the next five games and move into the second round.

"It was not an easy draw but it's a Grand Slam so you have to expect to play tough opponents," she told Eurosport afterwards. "For me it was amazing to play against Venus and play such a good first round."

On her recent injury problems, she said: "I try to take one day at a time to recover and be ready for each match. Luckily at a Grand Slam you have some time off so I will try to recover for the next match."

Next up, Svitolina faces her compatriot Kateryna Kozlova.