Double Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka reached the French Open second round on Wednesday but Agnieszka Radwanska’s hopes of playing younger sister Urszula for a place in the last 16 were dashed.
Azarenka clinched a 6-1 6-4 win over Elena Vesnina – her fifth win in five matches against the experienced Russian – and will next face German 19-year-old Annika Beck, the 2012 junior champion, for a place in the third round.
Roland Garros has been Azarenka’s least successful grand slam. Having reached at least the semi-finals of the other three majors, the 23-year-old’s best run in Paris was the last eight in 2009 and 2011.
But she was relatively untroubled on Wednesday against Vesnina.
Breaks in the second and sixth games of the opening set set up victory in a match held over from Tuesday because of rain.
She was 2-1 up with a break in the second before the 28-year-old Vesnina rallied to level at 3-3.
But it was a brief respite for the world No.38 as Azarenka hit back straight away to seal the tie after 78 minutes.
“It felt good to be on the court after getting cancelled yesterday,” said Azarenka.
“It was a good win as Elena is a really tough opponent.”
Polish fourth seed Radwanksa, who has never gone beyond the fourth round, eased past American Mallory Burdette 6-3 6-2.
She had been scheduled for a fourth-round showdown with her sister but Urszula, who put out Venus Williams in the first round, crashed out 6-3 6-3 to German qualifier Dinah Pfizenmaier.
Czech seventh seed Petra Kvitova and Russian 12th seed Maria Kirilenko were also early winners of their delayed first-round matches.
Kvitova was forced into a decider by Aravane Rezai of France before prevailing 6-3 4-6 6-2, while Kirilenko thrashed fellow Russian Nina Bratchikova 6-0 6-1.
Exciting Australian teenager Ashleigh Barty won her first grand slam match with an upset victory over big-hitting Czech Lucie Hradecka.
Barty, who only turned 17 last month, overcame world No.82 Hradecka 7-5 2-6 6-1 to set up a second-round clash with Kirilenko on Thursday.
Barty, ranked 183rd, had previously failed to win a match in five grand slams.
Eighth-seeded Angelique Kerber of Germany defeated Slovakian Jana Cepelova 6-2 6-2.
Later on Wednesday, women’s top seed Serena Williams – on a 25-match winning streak – faces French teenager Caroline Garcia.
World No.114 Garcia was a set and 4-1 up against Maria Sharapova at Roland Garros in the second round in 2011 before losing in three.
Williams is looking for a second title in Paris, 13 years after her first.