Serena Williams's conqueror Virginie Razzano has described her surprise defeat of the American as "beautiful".
The world number 111 came through in three hours in front of her home crowd at the French Open in the late hours of this evening.
"It's happiness, pure happiness. It's the most beautiful victory of my whole career, especially on the Philippe Chatrier court in front of the whole crowd," Razzano said.
The victory meant even more to the Frenchwoman because at the same stage of the tournament last year she lost her opening match, just eight days after the death of her fiance and coach Stephane Vidal from a brain tumour.
The 29-year-old spoke briefly about the loss of Vidal, saying: "The past is the past. I think now I did my mourning. I feel good today.
"It took time. I also worked with someone who helped me make progress and helped me maybe start something else, something new. I felt I was ready to go ahead and live my life professionally and personally.
"I wanted to win that match. I wanted to give myself the chance of winning it. I went as far as I could, and I think I won it as a champion."
Razzano, 29, will face unseeded Dutch Arantxa Rus in the second round at Roland Garros.
Pascal Lemesre
