Roland Garros 2021: 12 U.S. women, 7 men advance

The opening-round performances from Americans at Roland Garros set 21st-century records on both the men's and women's sides, with a total of 19 U.S. players advancing to Round 2 in singles play.

Twelve American women notched first-round victories on the Paris clay, making this the most successful French Open start for Team USA's women since 1991, when 13 Americans advanced. On the men's side, the seven American winners gives the U.S. seven or more men in the Round 2 for the second straight year. The last time that could be said was after a similar run from 1995-96, and the eight advancing Americans in 2020 were the most since nine men reached Round 2 in 1996.

Of the 12 victorious women, half were seeded: No. 4 Sofia Kenin, No. 7 Serena Williams, No. 13 Jennifer Brady, No. 23 Madison Keys, No. 24 Coco Gauff and No. 28 Jessica Pegula. Kenin's 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory over 2017 French Open champ Jelena Ostapenko was the pick of those matches, while Keys and Pegula also went the distance, winning the first and third sets over Oceane Dodin and Lin Zhu, respectively.

Also through are Sloane Stephens, Danielle Collins, Madison Brengle, Ann Li, Hailey Baptiste and Varvara Lepchenko. Stephens, a French finalist in 2018, notched a 3-6, 7-6, 6-4 win over Spain's Carla Suarez Navarro in the final match of the opening round. Despite the loss, Suarez Navarro's appearance in the event was a victory of its own, as she was competing in her first match since successfully undergoing treatment for Hodgkin’s lymphoma earlier this year. The Spaniard announced she was cancer-free in April, and plans to retire at the end of this season. Next up for Stephens is No. 9 seed Karolina Pliskova.

There will be one all-American matchup in Round 2, with Kenin taking on Baptiste, who has recorded four wins in Paris after coming through qualifying. 

On the men's side, Taylor Fritz, John Isner and Italian Open semifinalist Reilly Opelka—seeded 30th, 31st and 32nd—all advanced in straight sets, with Isner defeating fellow big-serving American Sam Querrey, 7-6, 6-3, 6-4. In another all-U.S. matchup, Steve Johnson stormed back from behind to knock off Frances Tiafoe, 6-7, 3-6, 6-4, 6-2, 6-1.

Marcos Giron, Tommy Paul and qualifier Mackenzie McDonald round out the list of American winners. Giron saved multiple match points against No. 16 seed Grigor Dimitrov and ultimately advanced when the Bulgarian retired with an injury midway through the fourth set of their meeting. Matching that for drama, Paul gutted out a five-set victory over Australian wild card Christopher O'Connell, 10-8 in the fifth.

The seven American men will avoid each other in Round 2, where Paul has the toughest draw, against No. 2 seed Daniil Medvedev.

For more from Roland Garros, including complete draws, scores, and the daily order of play, visit the tournament's official website.