Osaka of Japan won her first match at Roland Garros in three years, defeating her 6-1 4-6 7-5.
Osaka could have won faster; in the third set, she was up 4-0 when Bronzetti staged a late push.
This is just the second major the former world number one has participated in after returning from maternity leave in January.
Following her Grand Slam comeback, Osaka fell in the opening round of the Australian Open. “It really was like a rollercoaster,” she remarked.
“I was thinking to myself that I would really love to win a match here because I didn’t win one in Australia.
That was obviously a bad line of reasoning.” After her victory in Paris, she will probably face the big favorite and reigning champion, Iga Swiatek, in the second round on Monday when she faces Leolia Jeanjean of France.
While pregnant, Osaka claimed to have watched a lot of Swiatek’s matches. She also remarked that playing the current world number one would be a “big honor.”
“I definitely do feel like it’s a test to see where I’m at, but I wouldn’t say I have low expectations of myself,” she stated.
“I feel like I’m the underdog, and I think I thrive in those situations.”
Osaka, who is currently ranked 134th in the world, has never made it past the French Open’s round of 32. Her four Grand Slam victories have all occurred on hard courts.
On gusty Court Philippe-Chatrier, she won five games in a row to finish the opening set in just 27 minutes.
However, Bronzetti gained momentum in the match and, having found it difficult to break Osaka’s serve in the second set, he converted a critical break point at 5-4 to send the match to a decider.
The world no. 67 astonishingly battled back from a two break down in the third game, then Osaka broke again to take the lead and finish the two-hour back-and-forth match.
After previously suffering on the surface, the 26-year-old claims she is “embracing clay a lot more” now that she has achieved success.
