Following Barbora Krejcikova's 1R loss at Roland Garros, Serena Williams remains last female player to successfully defend a Major title

Defending women's singles champion Barbora Krejcikova stumbled at the first hurdle of the French Open on Monday. Her loss means that no woman has successfully defended a Major title since Serena Williams at the 2016 Wimbledon Championships, spanning 23 Grand Slams.

Krejcikova, 26, was returning from a three-month layoff after injuring her right elbow in February. Despite playing her first match on clay this season, the defending Roland Garros champion stormed out of the blocks against Diane Parry, pocketing the opener for the loss of just one game.

When the Czech went ahead 2-0 in the second, a swift ending seemed to be in sight for Parry, but the Frenchwoman suddenly caught fire. The World No. 97 reeled off six straight games to restore parity. She then grabbed the decisive break in the third set at 4-3 before serving out the biggest victory of her career and her first in the main draw of any tournament.

Krejcikova admitted after the match that her 1-6, 6-2, 6-3 loss was down to a lack of match practice.

"I just think I just collapsed physically," she said. "It was tough because I didn't play the matches. Usually the matches are different than the practices, and I tried to prepare the best way I could."

Following Krejcikova's loss, Emma Raducanu, at the US Open, will have the opportunity to become the first player since Williams to successfully defend a Major title.

Former World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty currently holds two of the four Majors at the Australian Open and Wimbledon, but she won't have a chance to defend her titles, having announced her retirement earlier this year.

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Barbora Krejcikova becomes third defending French Open women's singles champion to lose in first round in the Open Era

Barbora Krejcikova at the 2022 French Open

Barbora Krejcikova created some unwanted history at Roland Garros on Monday. The Czech became the third woman in the Open Era to crash out in the first round while defending their Roland Garros title.

Jelena Ostapenko fell in the opening round in 2018, losing to Kateryna Kozlova. In 2005, Anastasia Myskina failed to cross the first round, falling to Maria Sanchez Lorenzo after winning the title a year before. Myskina's loss marked the first time in the Open Era that the women's singles defending champion at Roland Garros bit the dust in the first round.

Meanwhile, following her win over Krejcikova, the 97th-ranked Parry became the lowest-ranked player in 11 years to beat the second seed in Paris. World No. 114 Arantxa Rus had beaten Kim Clijsters in the second round in 2011.