World number one Maria Sharapova fought off gusty winds and a resilient Evgeniya Rodina to advance into the second round of the French Open with a 6-1 3-6 8-6 victory.

The Russian, who is hoping to complete a career Grand Slam by winning the Roland Garros crown, served 17 double faults on a windswept Centre Court before downing her compatriot in two hours and 28 minutes.

Sharapova will take on American qualifier Bethanie Mattek for a place in the last 32.

Australian Open champion surrendered her opening service game to an opponent ranked 103 in the world but recovered to clinch the first set in 29 minutes with a series of angled winners.

Rodina, however, took full advantage of Sharapova's problems with her serve to break early in the second set and again in the ninth game to level the contest.

Sharapova fought tooth and nail to hold serve in the decider, staving off three break points in the eighth game.

It was Rodina who eventually cracked though, sailing a backhand long in the 13th game to give Sharapova the only break of the set.

A shrieking Sharapova stood firm with her serve and sealed the contest on her first match point when Rodina hit a backhand wide.

The match, which was scheduled for Tuesday, had been postponed to Wednesday because of persistent rain in the French capital.

Elsewhere, Sharapova's compatriot and former finalist Elena Dementieva picked herself up after losing a tough first set to crush her Vera Dushevina.

The seventh seed, runner-up to Anastasia Myskina in 2004, struggled with the blustery conditions before sealing a 6-7 6-0 6-2 victory against the world number 48.

The 26-year-old Dementieva lost the opener 8-6 in the tiebreak after a tense 67-minute set but then reeled off 11 straight games before wrapping up victory in two hours and 23 minutes.

She will play Poland's Marta Domachowska in the second round.

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Reuters