Roland Garros 2026: Francesca Jones digs deep for first Grand Slam win in Paris

The British No.4 took on the former world No.10 Beatriz Haddad Maia, winning 1-6, 7-6(4), 6-2 in two hours and 42 minutes on the French clay.

Jones, who got her first Grand Slam win on her seventh try, will face world No.28 Marie Bouzkova in the second round. The Czech star eased through her opener 6-3, 6-1 against Italian qualifier Lucia Bronzetti.

The British No.4 struggled in the opener, quickly dropping serve in the first game to the world No.78. Although Jones saved three break points at 3–1, it wasn’t long before the former Roland Garros semi-finalist pulled away. Serving to stay in the set at 5-1, the Brit produced a rare second-serve foot fault to hand the set over to the Brazilian.

However, the Brit kept her head up and some fiery tennis at the top of the second helped her recover from a break down twice to stay level. The 25-year-old, who reached a career-high ranking of 65 earlier this year, once again showed her spirit, fighting back from 40-0 down to edge ahead for the first time in the match. 

After eight breaks between them, the close set culminated in a tie-break, where the Brit raced to 4-1 up before keeping her cool to go level in sets on her first chance at 7-4.

Another round of tight games kickstarted the decider, but it was Jones who carried the momentum - winning five games on the bounce to go up a double break. 

The Brit looked unstoppable as she asked the question on the Brazilian's serve - Haddad Maia won just 9 points out of 35 behind her second serve in the second and third sets. With the pressure piled on, it was a wide ball from her opponent to wrap up the match and send the Brit to her first Grand Slam second-round match.