PARIS — Canada's Eugenie Bouchard advanced to the second round of the French Open by downing Anna Kalinskaya of Russia 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday.
Bouchard, ranked No. 168 and a wild-card entry at the clay-court Grand Slam, converted 6-of-8 break points and had 18 winners to dispatch the No. 108-ranked Kalinskaya in one hour 21 minutes.
Bouchard is coming off a finals appearance at the clay-court Istanbul Open two weeks ago — her first time playing for a title at a WTA tournament since 2016.
The 26-year-old Bouchard's best appearance at the French Open was a semifinal appearance in 2014. She reached a career-high No. 5 ranking later that year.
Bouchard will play Daria Gavrilova of Australia in the second round.
Gavrilova, ranked No. 251 in the world, upset No. 24 seed Dayana Yastremska of Ukraine in their first-round matchup.
Bouchard, from Westmount, Que., is one of six Canadian entries at Roland Garros but the only one in action Sunday.
The French Open usually takes place in the spring but was postponed by four months because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 27, 2020.
The Canadian Press
