Champion Henin marches into French Open second round

PARIS, May 30 (Reuters) Justine Henin-Hardenne opened the defence of her French Open crown with a 6-3 6-0 thrashing of Estonian Maret Ani to reach the second round at Roland Garros today.

Wearing long sleeves on a chilly centre court Henin, seeded fifth this year, raced to a 4-0 lead and pocketed the first set in 32 minutes.

She finished her warm-up against the world number 70 with a volleyed winner in just one hour.

Henin-Hardenne, who also won the tournament in 2003, will meet either Anastasiya Yakimova of Belarus or American Jill Craybas in the next round.

REUTERS PG KP2115