STRASBOURG, France (AP) Defending champion Caroline Garcia advanced to the second round of the clay-court Strasbourg International on Monday with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Jennifer Brady.
The 29th-ranked Frenchwoman broke early in the opening set but struggled with unforced errors in the second against her American opponent. Garcia found her rhythm toward the end of the second set and won three games in a row to progress at the tune-up tournament for the French Open, which starts on Sunday in Paris.
The fifth-seeded Garcia won her first title in more than two years in Strasbourg last year.