Poland’s four-time Roland Garros champion Iga Swiatek began her French Open 2026 title defence in style, advancing easily into the second round in straight sets. Meanwhile, it was farewell time for Swiss veteran Stan Wawrinka, whose match ended on Monday at the French Open.
Swiatek won her first round encounter against Australia’s Emerson Jones 6-1, 6-2 in just one hour and ten minutes. Playing on Philippe Chatrier Court, the Pole dominated her match, using her powerful groundstrokes effectively to get past her opponent with ease.
With recent months seeing Swiatek struggling badly in terms of form, this result gives her a platform to build momentum going forward. After all, the French Open has been one of the best stages for her to showcase her tennis game and continue challenging for Grand Slam trophies.
“I played a good match; it was solid overall. It was great to start well, and it wasn’t too tricky to control the rallies. It’s really good to stay relaxed in such matches,” said Swiatek about her victory.
On the other hand, Roland Garros 2015 champion Stan Wawrinka had to bow out after suffering a four-set defeat against Dutch lucky loser Jesper de Jong 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
This was Wawrinka’s last appearance at Roland Garros. Fans at Simonne Mathieu Court applauded the 41-year-old player for his remarkable contribution over the last two decades in Paris.
As one of the most talented players of his generation, Wawrinka won several major titles. His French Open triumph in 2015 still ranks among the finest achievements of the Swiss player. At that time, he knocked out Novak Djokovic in the final to claim his only Grand Slam title at Paris.
However, this Roland Garros tournament became his final one in Paris, which means that he has closed the book on yet another memorable chapter in his tennis career. Although he found it hard to say farewell to one of his favorite venues, Wawrinka was very proud of his long journey so far.
“Obviously, it was tough to play my last match here. But I was able to reflect on all those years of playing here. Saying goodbye to the place where you achieved something is quite an unusual feeling for me. I have to congratulate the French crowd on all the support,” said Wawrinka.
Another French Open veteran Gael Monfils also suffered an upset in Paris as the French player bowed out to Hugo Gaston 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 2-6, 6-0 in a memorable night clash at Philippe Chatrier.
Apart from Swiatek and Monfils, other seeded players also took care of their first-round matches at French Open 2026.
French champion Zheng Qinwen suffered an upset against qualifier Maja Chwalinska 6-4, 6-0, whereas Casper Ruud recovered from an injury scare to beat Roman Safiullin 7-6(6), 6-4, 4-6, 4-6, 6-2.
Similarly, Elena Rybakina earned a comfortable 6-2, 6-2 victory over Veronika Erjavec.
Heat was another topic discussed at Roland Garros on Monday as the venue witnessed sweltering temperatures in the afternoon session.
Overall, this day provided an intriguing mix of different emotions as both Swiatek and Wawrinka played their respective last matches at French Open 2026.
Source note: Major match results, scores, and selected quotes used in this article are based on the Reuters report published by CNA.