PTI

Paris, May 28: Triple champion Justine Henin and Serena Williams, the 2002 winner, reached the second round of the French Open Grand Slam tennis as Roland Garros shivered in rain and biting cold.

In an opening day programme decimated by a six-hour rain delay, Belgian top seed Henin, bidding for a third successive title here and fourth in all, saw off Russian 20-year-old Elena Vesnina 6-4, 6-3.

Henin wrapped up victory in 89 minutes and will face Austrian 16-year-old Tamira Paszek, who took a set off her in Dubai in February, for a place in the third round.

Vesnina, the world number 65, squandered her best chance of creating a shock when she had two points to lead 4-1 in the second set. But once the Belgian had rediscovered her composure, the result was never in doubt.

"It was a hard, tough day and the weather will be like this for the rest of the week," said Henin playing her first Grand Slam event since the break-up of her marriage.

"But winning today is all that counts. It was tough but I controlled the match at the end."

Williams, reinvigorated by her surprise Australian Open triumph in January, which gave the American her eighth career Grand Slam title, had a much tougher time in her first round clash.

The eighth seed won 12 of the last 13 games as she was forced to battle back from a set down to beat Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova 5-7, 6-1, 6-1 and book a match-up with either Virginie Razzano of France or Milagros Sequera of Venezuela.