Seles through, Kournikova out

Seles made short work of beating Barbara Schett

Click here for Wednesday's results from Paris

Monica Seles blitzed her way past Barbara Schett and into the second round of the Open Gaz de France on Wednesday.

But while Seles was dominant, Russia's Anna Kournikova continues to struggle on her return from injury and was well beaten by defending champion Amelie Mauresmo.

It took just 55 minutes for Seles, the number five seed, to clinch an impressive 6-2 6-3 win, setting up a clash with Italian qualifier Adriana Serra-Zanetti for a place in the quarter-finals.

Schett, who had lost all five previous meetings with Seles, never looked like breaking that sequence in Paris.

Third seed Mauresmo was too strong for Kournikova

She lost her serve on three occasions in the first set which Seles wrapped up in just 22 minutes.

The Austrian fared little better in the second, twice being broken although she did save two match points at the death.

"I was really unhappy at having to miss the French Open because of injury last year," said Seles who was suffering from a right foot injury at the time.

"But it's great to be back in Paris and to win like that against such a tough opponent like Barbara."

The 28-year-old Seles, chasing a 52nd career title, went into her match against Schett having reached the semi-finals of last month's Australian Open.

She lost in three sets to Martina Hingis in Melbourne, and was beaten by her in the final of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo last weekend.

It will take time to get back to a good level - I just need to play more and concentrate

Anna Kournikova

Meanwhile, France's Mauresmo became the first player to book a place in the last eight with a 6-3 7-5 win over Kournikova.

The loss means that Kournikova's search for that elusive, first career singles title goes on as her 96th tournament ended in disappointment.

She constantly struggled to match the French number three seed's power in her 67-minute defeat.

"I really need more consistency. I made far too many unforced errors," said Kournikova, now ranked 86th in the world.

"When I came back from injury last year, I was still feeling my way around.

"It will take time to get back to a good level. I just need to play more and concentrate."

Williams eased her way past Tu

Elsewhere, Venus Williams eased her way past compatriot Meilen Tu 6-1 6-3.

Williams looked comfortable throughout the 50-minute encounter, showing no signs of the injury problems which blighted her Australian Open progress.

Tu, who only qualified for the tournament as a lucky loser, took just four points off the Williams serve in the opening set.

It was a closer second set but the world number 58 never looked likely to bother Williams.

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Open Gaz de France results:

Second round:
1-V Williams (US) bt M Tu (US) 6-1 6-3
3-A Mauresmo (Fra) bt A Kournikova (Rus) 6-3 7-5

First round:
A Kremer (Lux) bt A-G Sidot (Fra) 6-3 6-7 (3/7) 7-6 (7/5)
5-M Seles (US) bt B Schett (Aut) 6-2 6-3
N Dechy (Fra) bt D Bedanova (Cze) 6-3 3-6 6-4
7-S Farina Elia (Ita) bt A Montolio (Spa) 6-2 6-2
A Serra-Zanetti (Ita) bt M Serna (Spa) 2-6 7-5 6-4

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