Li Na, the 2011 champion, and Polish fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska were early winners at the French Open on Monday.

Sixth seeded Chinese star Li was a 6-3 6-4 winner over Anabel Medina Garrigues, the experienced Spaniard playing in her 38th consecutive grand slam event.

Li, who had lost all of her three previous meetings on clay against Garrigues, goes on to face Bethanie Mattek-Sands of the United States for a place in the last 32.

But in a rollercoaster season on the surface for the Chinese superstar, where she was runner-up to Maria Sharapova in Stuttgart before suffering early exits in Madrid and Rome, she will look to improve on an up and down performance on Monday where there were 10 breaks of serve.

Radwanska, who has never got beyond the last 16 in Paris, breezed past Israel’s Shahar Peer 6-1 6-1 and will face America’s Mallory Burdette in the next round.

She is scheduled to face younger sister Urszula, who knocked out Venus Williams on Sunday, in the third round.

The Pole, last year’s Wimbledon runner-up, came into Paris nursing a shoulder injury which forced her to withdraw from Brussels last week and contributed to second round exits in Madrid and Rome.

But Radwanska, with her hair now dyed blonde just like her sister, said she is fit enough to last the distance at Roland Garros.

“Well, it’s up and down, but definitely it’s a little bit worse on clay,” she said. “I think I’m used to the pain. I’m ready to go and I’m 100% fit.”