Mauresmo makes a steady start

Second seed Amelie Mauresmo made a steady start to her quest for a first Grand Slam title as she beat American Marissa Irvin 6-4, 6-2 on Mon...

Second seed Amelie Mauresmo made a steady start to her quest for a first Grand Slam title as she beat American Marissa Irvin 6-4, 6-2 on Monday to reach the second round.

The Frenchwoman, a semi-finalist at Flushing Meadows in 2002, was made to fight harder than expected but her greater consistency proved the difference as she clinched victory in one hour, 13 minutes.

She8217;ll meet either American Amber Liu or Julia Vakulenko of Ukraine in round two.

Looking relaxed and confident, Mauresmo, who has won three titles this year, raced to a 3-0 lead in the first set, but the 24-year-old Irvin broke back in the ninth game, only for a netted forehand in the 10th game to hand Mauresmo the set. An early break in the second set put Mauresmo in control and though Irvin forced a break point in the fifth game, the Frenchwoman held firm to advance.

Italian Francesca Schiavone, the 16th seed, was the first woman to progress after she beat Klara Koukalova of Czech Republic 6-1, 6-3, while 12th seed Ai Sugiyama of Japan ousted American Teryn Ashley 7-5, 6-2.

Justine confident

Meanwhile, Justine Henin-Hardenne says she has finally emerged from a dark tunnel and is ready to defend her US Open title. The world No 1 and top seed here was struck down by a lingering viral illness, cytomegalovirus, for a large chunk of the year and it seemed unlikely she would be in a fit state to play at Flushing Meadows.

The 22-year-old, who was forced to miss Wimbledon, returned from an eight-week lay-off to win the gold medal at the Athens Olympics and appears to be once again firing on all cylinders. 8220;I played six matches in seven days in Athens at a very high level,8221; said the Belgian, who thrashed world No 2 Amelie Mauresmo of France 6-3, 6-3 in the final nine days ago. I was a little bit surprised the way I came back, not only physically, but also with my concentration. I was so happy to be back and that helped me achieve what I did,8221; she said on Monday.

Story continues below this ad

There was a time after her shock second-round loss to little-known Italian Tathiana Garbin at the French Open in May when she wondered whether her health would return.

8220;When you feel like that you don8217;t see the end of the tunnel, that8217;s for sure,8221; said Henin-Hardenne, who faces 15-year-old Czech qualifier Nicole Vaidisova in the first round on Tuesday. If anything, Henin-Hardenne believes the experience of this year has been a useful wake-up call and will allow her to stay at the top for longer.