Svitolina Knocks Venus Williams Out of French Open in Straight Sets

The No. 9 seed Svitolina beat Venus Williams 6-3, 6-3 to advance to the second round in Paris.

PARIS — Venus Williams' 22nd appearance at the French Open did not last long.

The 2002 runner-up lost her opening match at Roland Garros for the second year in a row, beaten 6-3, 6-3 by ninth-seeded Elina Svitolina in 1 hour, 13 minutes.

The 38-year-old Williams lost in the first round for the fourth time in the last seven years at the clay-court Grand Slam tournament.

Wiliams was broken in seven of her nine service games.