Swiatek and Raducanu Advance in Roland Garros Openers, Set for Round 2 Clash

For the second consecutive Grand Slam, Iga Swiatek and Emma Raducanu are set to face off in the tournament’s opening week.

Fifth seed Swiatek faced a tougher-than-usual challenge in her Roland Garros opener, rallying from 3-1 down in the second set to defeat Rebecca Sramkova 6-3, 6-3 as she began her title defense. Shortly after, Raducanu booked her spot in Round 2 with a hard-fought 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 victory over Wang Xinyu in a grueling 2-hour, 44-minute battle on Court 8.

Opening hurdle cleared ✅

Catch the highlights from Iga Swiatek's first round match against Rebecca Sramkova right here!#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/kIdv4n0NwY

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 26, 2025

In their third-round clash at the Australian Open earlier this year, Iga Swiatek dominated Emma Raducanu with a commanding 6-0, 6-1 win in just 70 minutes. The former World No. 1 has yet to drop a set against Raducanu in their four previous meetings. However, their most competitive encounters have come on clay—at the Stuttgart quarterfinals in 2022 and 2024—where Swiatek prevailed 6-4, 6-4 and 7-6(2), 6-3, respectively.

“I didn’t really think about the [Australian Open] match, honestly,” Swiatek said after her win over Sramkova. “I was thinking about our Stuttgart match, and I think we played another time on clay after — I’m not sure. I’m not good at that. But I don’t really take a lot from that except the experience and … knowing how she plays.

“But Melbourne and Roland Garros are totally different surfaces, different stories. I’ll prepare tactically like I should for a clay-court match, and that’s it.

Raducanu, meanwhile, is approaching the match with a nothing-to-lose mindset.

“It’s a great opportunity for me to test myself and see where my level’s at,” she said. “Especially on clay—this is her favorite tournament and surface. She’s won it, what, four times? It’s the kind of match where I can just go for my shots, because if I just push the ball, I’ll probably get eaten alive.

An outstanding comeback from @paulabadosa against Osaka! 💪🇪🇸 Check out our highlights, presented by @Emirates ✈️#RolandGarros #Emirates #FlyBetter pic.twitter.com/rmRYJUFAJc

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 26, 2025

Swiatek Overcomes Sramkova Test to Extend Roland Garros Streak

Swiatek faced a familiar opponent in her Roland Garros opener, taking on Rebecca Sramkova in a rematch of their Australian Open second-round encounter earlier this year, where the Pole cruised to a 6-0, 6-2 victory in just an hour. This time, the No. 42-ranked Sramkova brought a much higher level, pushing Swiatek in extended baseline rallies and tallying 23 winners—just two shy of Swiatek’s 25.

Mixing power with finesse through clever drop shots and lobs, Sramkova kept both sets close in their early stages. But Swiatek raised her level when it counted. With the first set tied at 3-3, the former World No. 1 unleashed a flurry of aggressive play, breaking serve on her third opportunity with a crisp backhand down the line. Down 3-1 in the second set, Swiatek surged back with a streak of 10 straight points and reeled off five consecutive games to close out the match.

The victory extended Swiatek’s Roland Garros winning streak to 22 matches and her streak in WTA tournament openers to 60. Her most recent losses in both categories came at the hands of Maria Sakkari—at the 2021 Roland Garros quarterfinals and the WTA Finals group stage in Guadalajara that same year.

Katie Boulter ends the Monnet time ⌚️#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/xwR5ccqtvQ

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 26, 2025

Raducanu Takes Charge Late to Outlast Wang in Thriller

Emma Raducanu turned the tide in the final stretch to overcome Wang Xinyu in a high-quality, three-set battle—one that mirrored their only previous encounter. That 2021 clash in Linz, which came just two months after Raducanu’s stunning US Open triumph, saw Wang edge the Brit 6-1, 6-7(0), 7-5 after 2 hours and 36 minutes of top-tier shot-making. Their Roland Garros rematch delivered similar intensity.

From the outset, Raducanu’s forehand—an area of recent focus in her training—proved a decisive factor. She struck two clean winners off that wing to secure an early break, setting the tone. Long considered her secondary shot behind the backhand, Raducanu’s forehand has shown marked improvement in recent months.

“It’s just a good development in my game that’s come more recently,” she said. “I enjoy looking for it. I like seeing how far around the center I can run and how many backhands I can convert into forehands. In terms of angles, I have a lot more options when I take that middle ball as a forehand.

“I’m really happy with how it’s coming along. It’s becoming a weapon. Growing up, my backhand was always stronger, but the goal now is to have the best of both worlds.

Raducanu Battles Illness and Wang to Advance in Three-Set Thriller

Emma Raducanu showed grit and resilience in a hard-fought three-set win over Wang Xinyu, overcoming not just a tough opponent but also her own physical struggles to reach the second round at Roland Garros.

For much of the opening set, Raducanu held the upper hand, staying just ahead as Wang continued to apply pressure. After being pegged back from 5-3 to 5-5, Raducanu dug in, raising her level on return to take the final two games and clinch the set—despite requiring a medical timeout at 6-5.

Daria Kasatkina prevails despite tough adversity from Katerina Siniakova 💪#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/kZiHzYmVHQ

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) May 26, 2025

“I’m actually really proud of today’s match, more than a lot of matches I’ve played recently,” she said afterward. “I woke up feeling really sick—just bad from the morning—and had to fight through it. I felt it from the start, and it didn’t go away throughout the whole match. To come through that and overcome how I was feeling, I’m really happy. It would’ve been easy to let it drag me down.”

Wang responded in the second set with a pair of blistering backhands down the line to break for 3-1, quickly extending her lead to 5-1 as Raducanu’s rhythm faltered. But just as the set seemed lost, the Briton came roaring back, reeling off three games with aggressive, confident ball-striking to close the gap. Though she couldn’t convert four chances to level at 5-5, the momentum had shifted.

Raducanu carried that energy into the final set, immediately breaking Wang with a crushing forehand return and dazzling the crowd with a deft half-volley on her way to a 3-0 lead. Wang showed late resistance, breaking back at 5-2, but the deficit proved too steep. On Raducanu’s third match point, Wang double faulted, sealing the 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 victory for the Brit.

With the win, Raducanu sets up a highly anticipated second-round clash with top seed Iga Swiatek.