WTA: Henin, Serena win openers at rainy French Open

Paris, France (Sports Network) - Top-seeded Justine Henin and eighth-seed Serena Williams were both first round winners on Sunday at the rain-soaked French Open, the second grand slam tennis tournament of the year.

Henin, who is the two-time defending champion here, defeated Russian Elena Vesnina, 6-4, 6-3 while Williams rebounded from a opening set loss to 19-year- old Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria to win 5-7, 6-1, 6-1.

"I was thinking 'There's no way I'm gonna go home on Sunday, it's not even Monday,' Williams said. "I can't lose on Sunday. It also kept me really motivated."

Williams won the title here in 2002 and is competing in the French Open for the first time in the last three years because of injuries.

Play was halted for over six hours as heavy rains caused several matches to be postponed until Monday. More rain is in the forecast for Monday and could delay the start of action.