PARIS — Whistles and whispers circulated through the stands at Court Suzanne Lenglen on Sunday, a reaction brought about not by Venus Williams’ play at the French Open, but rather by her outfit.
With a lacy, black overlay giving it the illusion of being see-through, and bright red trim on the bodice, Williams’ corsetlike get-up made her look as if she were ready to perform in a 19th century Parisian cancan chorus line. Her game, a mix of power and niftier-than-usual footwork on this day, was very 21st century, and befitting a star of the show.
The red clay of Roland Garros never has been Williams’ best stage — her seven Grand Slam titles all came at Wimbledon or the U.S. Open. At this year’s French Open, she is ensured of at least one more performance, thanks to a 6-3, 6-3 victory over former top-10 player Patty Schnyder of Switzerland in the first round.
Williams said her look was “about illusion,” which, she noted, is “a lot of my motif this year” when it comes to clothes design. She also said she might not wear that particular dress again on court.
Either way, Williams comes to a tournament with eight to 10 outfits, just in case the victories keep coming.
And she plans a lengthy stay in Paris this time around, perhaps capped by a title.
“I always — goes without saying — believe I can win,” said Williams, whose biggest glitches Sunday were eight double-faults.
Williams lost in the third round at each of the past three French Opens and only once has been beyond the quarterfinals in 13 previous trips. She lost to younger sister Serena in the 2002 final.
Still, Venus’ hitting partner, David Witt, said after Sunday’s victory: “If she goes out there and is smart and plays smart tennis, I think she can win the tournament.”
There are others who will have some say in that, of course, including defending champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, who also won in straight sets, and the top-ranked Serena, whose first-round match is today. Venus is back at No. 2 in the rankings for the first time since May 2003, and was not shy about saying she wants to bump her sister off the top spot.
“It feels good to be moving up the ranks. Obviously, when you get to 2, of course, the next dream is 1,” Venus said.
As for chasing Serena?
“When we’re on the court, and when we’re competing against each other, it’s competition,” Venus said. “Both of us feel that, you know: May the better player be the best.”
Generally, the better players were, well, better than their opponents on Day 1 of the year’s second Grand Slam.
Only one seeded man departed. No. 23 Ernests Gulbis of Latvia, who upset Roger Federer at Rome this month, stopped because of a right thigh injury while trailing Julien Benneteau of France 6-4, 6-2, 1-0. Two seeded women left: No. 10 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, a quarterfinalist a year ago, lost to Gisela Dulko of Argentina 6-1, 6-2, and No. 20 Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez of Spain lost to Akgul Amanmuradova of Uzbekistan 6-2, 6-4.
Winners included 2009 runner-up Robin Soderling, who stunned four-time champion Rafael Nadal in the fourth round last year; No. 8 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, No. 10 Marin Cilic and No. 11 Mikhail Youzhny.
Joining Kuznetsova in the women’s second round were No. 15 Aravane Rezai, No. 19 Nadia Petrova, No. 26 Dominika Cibulkova and No. 30 Maria Kirilenko.
At a glance
A look at the French Open on Sunday:
Stat of the day: 46 — Winners hit by Robin Soderling in his victory over Laurent Recouderc.
Quote of the day: “It was hard- core choking.” — 41st-ranked Andrea Petkovic of Germany, explaining what happened when she let a 5-1 lead shrink to 5-4 in the third set against Elena Vesnina of Russia. Petkovic won and plays Svetlana Kuznetsova next.
On court today: MEN — No. 1 Roger Federer vs. Peter Luczak, No. 3 Novak Djokovic vs. Evgeny Korolev, No. 4 Andy Murray vs. Richard Gasquet; WOMEN — No. 1 Serena Williams vs. Stefanie Voegele, No. 3 Caroline Wozniacki vs. Alla Kudryavtseva.
Today’s TV: Tennis Channel, 3 a.m. to 1 p.m.
