PARIS (AP) – Maria Sharapova will get an early test in her bid for a third French Open title.
The defending champion, who has been battling a cold, limited her mistakes to just eight unforced errors as she beat Russian Fed Cup teammate Vitalia Diatchenko 6-3, 6-1 on Wednesday.
Sharapova advanced to a third-round match against 2010 French Open finalist Samantha Stosur. The Australian swept to a 6-0, 6-1 victory over French wild card entry Amandine Hesse.
The rout extended Stosur’s winning streak to seven matches after she arrived in Paris on the back of her first title this year in Strasbourg.
In men’s play, second-seeded Roger Federer made light work of Marcel Granollers, winning 6-2, 7-6 (1), 6-3, while 2014 Australian Open winner Stan Wawrinka reached the third round with a 6-3, 6-4, 5-7, 6-3 defeat of Dusan Lajovic. No. 12 seed Gilles Simon eased past Martin Klizan, 7-5, 6-2, 6-3.