Kiwi pair start well

Kiwi duo Michael Venus and Erin Routliffe both got off to a flyer at the French Open, easing into second round of the men’s and women’s doubles at Roland Garros. Venus, who won the 2017 men’s doubles title in Paris with American Ryan Harrison, has reunited with regular partner Tim Putz and the seventh seeds combined to see off Australian James Duckworth and Belarussian Ilya Ivaskha in less than an hour, 6-2 6-4. Routliffe also enjoyed a winning start, earning an impressive 6-2 7-5 win over 16th seeds Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Aussie Ellen Perez on her tournament debut. Routlifee was playing alongside Polish partner Alicja Rosolska.