PARIS (Reuters) – Former French Open runner-up Sloane Stephens was dumped out of the tournament when she lost 6-4 4-6 6-2 to Paula Badosa of Spain in the second round on Thursday.
The American 29th seed, a finalist at Roland Garros two years ago, was rarely in the mix on court 12, her comeback to one-set all proving to be a false dawn.
The result capped a miserable run on clay this season for the 2017 U.S. Open champion, who entered the event on the back of first-round exits at the Italian Open and Strasbourg International.
Badosa, 22, will play her first third round match at a Grand Slam against 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia.
(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Ken Ferris)