Canadian tennis aces advance at French Open

PARIS – Montreal-based tennis aces Leylah Fernandez and Felix Auger-Aliassime shook some early jitters and then bounced their rivals in first round action Sunday at the French Open.

Fernandez staved off two set points in the second set while winning the last four games to finish a 6-0, 7-5 victory over Kristina Mladenovic of France. The 17th-seed Fernandez will play against Czech Katerina Siniakova on Wednesday.

Earlier on Sunday, Auger-Aliassime recorded a French Open victory for the first time in three tries and won a match after dropping the opening two sets.

The No. 9 seed bounced back to eliminate Juan Pablo Varillas, a qualifier from Peru making his Grand Slam debut, by a score of 2-6, 2-6, 6-1, 6-3, 6-3.

“It was disappointing in the match to see how things were going, I really hoped for better,” Auger-Aliassime said after the win. “But I think that’s why I also wanted to really push myself and really try everything. … I feel like I left it all on the court.”

Auger-Aliassime will play Argentine qualifier Camilo Ugo Carabelli on Wednesday.

Rebecca Marino of Vancouver didn’t enjoy as much success, dropping her first-round match against young American upstart Coco Gauff by scores of 7-6, 6-0.

The 31-year-old from Vancouver was appearing in the French Open for the first time since 2011.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sunday, May 22