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Defending champion Iga Swiatek celebrated her 20th birthday with a 6-0, 7-5 win over her best friend Kaja Juvan to advance to the second round of Roland Garros 2021.
The Pole got off to a blistering start and staved off a late challenge from the Slovenian to set up a meeting with Rebecca Peterson.
On that note, let's take a look at the three major talking points from Iga Swiatek's first-round win:
#1 Iga Swiatek delivers her third consecutive bagel
Iga Swiatek looked in ominous form on Court Philippe-Chatrier. The Pole, who won the final in Rome against Karolina Pliskova without dropping a single game, served up yet another bagel against Juvan as she kickstarted her title defense in Paris in fine fashion.
The eighth seed showed no signs of nerves and dictated terms with her brilliant movement and heavy forehands. Her return game was top-notch and she broke the 101st-ranked Kaja Juvan thrice to take the first set.
Juvan was a spectator for much of the opener and had no answer to the Pole's power-hitting.
#2 Swiatek can be vulnerable under pressure
Even the best in the game can crack under pressure and Iga Swiatek is no exception. After going a set and a break up, Swiatek seemed to lose all focus and rhythm.
With nothing to lose, Kaja Juvan started playing with more freedom and her aggressive hitting, coupled with nifty dropshots, put Swiatek in a spot of bother and snatched the momentum away from the defending champion.
Juvan did not pass up any chance to come forward and finish points at the net, piling the pressure on Swiatek, who suffered a brief lapse in concentration and gave up the break advantage she had.
Clearly flustered, the Pole began missing first serves and even committed a couple of double faults. With the unforced error count piling up, Swiatek had to fight off three break points in the remainder of the second set.
Juvan refused to back down and hit more winners (18) than Swiatek (12) but the Pole regained control to break in the 12th game and seal the win.
#3 16 straight sets at Roland Garros for Swiatek
With a straight-sets victory on Monday, Swiatek has now won 16 consecutive sets at the claycourt Major.
Last year, the Pole blasted her way through the draw, accounting for the likes of Simona Halep and Sofia Kenin in straight sets en route to the title. In fact, Swiatek did not concede more than five games in any match. Interestingly enough, she dropped just five games today, all of them in the second set.
Swiatek will hope it is the start of yet another spectacular fortnight for the 20-year-old, who has very much established herself in the top tier of women's tennis.
