Justine Henin opened the defence of her French Open crown with a battling 6-4, 6-3 win over 20-year-old Russian Elena Vesnina.
After a wait of nearly six hours because of rain, the world number one, who won the title in 2003, 2005 and 2006, came from 3-1 down in the second set to clinch victory and set up a clash with Austrian Tamira Paszek.
"I think she played a very good match but at the end I decided to be a tougher player. Winning's all that matters today," said Henin.