Tennis-Venus Williams downs French teenager Cornet

Venus Williams overcame a stuttering start to beat teenage French wildcard Alize Cornet 6-4 6-3 to reach the second round

Former world number one Venus Williams overcame a stuttering start to beat teenage French wildcard Alize Cornet 6-4 6-3 to reach the second round of the French Open on Monday.

After a delay of almost three hours because of rain, Williams was out of sorts early on and the pair were locked at 4-4 before the American, seeded 26, reeled off eight of the next 11 games for victory.

Cornet, the world number 118, twice recovered breaks in the first set but Williams, looking to win the title for the first time, then broke for a third time to forge ahead.

The 17-year-old Cornet gave the crowd something to cheer when she broke back to level at 2-2 in the second set, but Williams moved up a couple of gears to set up a clash with American Ashley Harkleroad or Aleksandra Wosniak of Canada.