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Paris - Serena Williams admitted the 'mother, champion, queen, goddess' logo which adorned her Roland Garros outfit on Monday was "a lot to carry, but so is being Serena".
PICTURES: A look at what Serena is wearing at the French Open this year!
The 37-year-old American survived a first-set scare before defeating Russia's Vitalia Diatchenko 2-6, 6-1, 6-0 to reach the second round.
But as she struggled to impose herself on her 83rd-ranked opponent, it looked like her dazzling choice of costume for the occasion might come back to haunt her.
The legend of 'mother, champion, queen, goddess' was written in French in a nod to her hosts.
Once the cape was removed, Williams revealed a black and white zebra-stripe print dress, split at one thigh.
Last year, Williams fell foul of Roland Garros with her one-piece Black Panther outfit which was subsequently banned.
"It was just to remind everyone that they can be champions and are queens. So I love that about it," she said of her 2019 dress and cape.
"Yeah. It is a lot to carry, but so is being Serena Williams."
The American, who is attempting to equal Margaret Court's all-time record of 24 Grand Slam titles, racked up her 800th career main draw win with her victory in front of a half-full Court Philippe Chatrier.
After dropping the first set, she was in danger of suffering just the second opening round defeat of her Grand Slam tournament career.
But normal service was quickly resumed as she racked up 12 of the last 13 games.
"You know, I have been dealing with a lot, and then I just got nervous out there and I stopped moving my feet.
"There were like concrete blocks on my feet. I was, like, 'You gotta do something'."
Williams, the 2002, 2013 and 2015 champion in Paris, will face either Japan's Kurumi Nara or Dalila Jakupovic of Slovenia for a place in the last 32, after their match was suspended at one-set-all overnight.
Williams won her most recent major at the Australian Open in 2017 while pregnant.
She returned to Grand Slam tennis after giving birth to her daughter at Roland Garros in 2018, making the last 16 where she had been set to resume her bitter rivalry with Maria Sharapova.
An arm injury torpedoed that meeting and stalled her assault on a fourth title in Paris.
Defeat in the 2018 Wimbledon final and US Open championship match, where her now-infamous meltdown overshadowed Naomi Osaka's title triumph, followed her Paris heartbreak.
Her Australian Open campaign in January ended in a quarter-final loss to Karolina Pliskova despite having led 5-1 in the final set and holding four match points.
Since Melbourne, Williams had been unable to finish the three tournaments she had entered -- retiring in the third round of Indian Wells and withdrawing after winning a round in Miami, and after winning one round in Rome due to a right knee injury.
Results from the second day of the French Open on Monday (x denotes seeding):
Men
First round
Novak Djokovic (SRB x1) bt Hubert Hurkacz (POL) 6-4, 6-2, 6-2
Henri Laaksonen (SUI) bt Pedro Martinez (ESP) 6-1, 6-0, 7-6 (7/4)
Salvatore Caruso (ITA) bt Jaume Munar (ESP) 7-5, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3
Gilles Simon (FRA x26) bt Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) 6-3, 6-3, 6-4
Jan-Lennard Struff (GER) bt Denis Shapovalov (CAN x20) 7-6 (7/1), 6-3, 6-4
Radu Albot (MDA) bt Tennys Sandgren (USA) 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (7/1), 3-6, 6-1
Lloyd Harris (RSA) bt Lukas Rosol (CZE) 6-1, 4-6, 2-6, 6-1, 6-2
Borna Coric (CRO x13) bt Aljaz Bedene (SLO) 6-1, 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 6-4
Dominic Thiem (AUT x4) bt Tommy Paul (USA) 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-2
Alexander Bublik (KAZ) bt Rudolf Molleker (GER) 7-5, 6-7 (4/7), 6-1, 7-6 (7/2)
Pablo Cuevas (URU) bt Maxime Janvier (FRA) 6-4, 6-4, 6-2
Roberto Carballes Baena (ESP) bt Alexandre Muller (FRA) 6-4, 6-4, 6-2
Filip Krajinovic (SRB) bt Frances Tiafoe (USA x32) 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-0
Stan Wawrinka (SUI x24) bt Jozef Kovalik (SVK) 6-1, 6-7 (3/7), 6-2, 6-3
Cristian Garin (CHI) bt Reilly Opelka (USA) 7-6 (7/0), 7-5, 7-6 (9/7)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) bt Peter Gojowczyk (GER) 7-6 (7/4), 6-1, 4-6, 6-3
Alex De Minaur (AUS x21) bt Bradley Klahn (USA) 6-1, 6-4, 6-4
Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP) bt Joao Sousa (POR) 6-3, 6-1, 6-2
Benoit Paire (FRA) bt Marius Copil (ROU) 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-0, 6-1
Pierre-Hugues Herbert (FRA) bt Daniil Medvedev (RUS x12) 4-6, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5
Juan Ignacio Londero (ARG) bt Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO x15) 6-4, 6-1, 6-3
Richard Gasquet (FRA) bt Mischa Zverev (GER) 6-3, 6-4, 6-3
Corentin Moutet (FRA) bt Alexey Vatutin (RUS) 6-4, 7-6 (8/6), 6-4
Guido Pella (ARG x19) bt Guido Andreozzi (ARG) 7-6 (7/2), 6-4, 1-6, 6-1
Miomir Kecmanovic (SRB) bt Denis Kudla (USA) 6-0, 6-7 (7/9), 5-7, 6-3, 6-4
Yannick Maden (GER) bt Kimmer Coppejans (BEL) 7-6 (7/0), 7-5, 6-3
Rafael Nadal (ESP x2) bt Yannick Hanfmann (GER) 6-2, 6-1, 6-3
Women
First round
Serena Williams (USA x10) bt Vitalia Diatchenko (RUS) 2-6, 6-1, 6-0
Sofia Kenin (USA) bt Giulia Gatto-Monticone (ITA) 6-3, 5-7, 6-2
Su-Wei Hsieh (TPE x25) bt Viktorija Golubic (SUI) 6-4, 3-6, 6-0
Andrea Petkovic (GER) bt Alison Riske (USA) 2-6, 6-3, 7-5
Danielle Collins (USA) bt Tatjana Maria (GER) 6-0, 6-2
Ashleigh Barty (AUS x8) bt Jessica Pegula (USA) 6-3, 6-3
Ekaterina Alexandrova (RUS) bt Mihaela Buzarnescu (ROU x30) 6-4, 6-4
Samantha Stosur (AUS) bt Barbora Strycova (CZE) 6-2, 7-6 (7/3)
Aliona Bolsova Zadoinov (ESP) bt Vera Zvonareva (RUS) 6-4, 6-2
Sorana Cirstea (ROU) bt Kaja Juvan (SLO) 5-7, 6-4, 7-5
Jennifer Brady (USA) bt Ivana Jorovic (SRB) 7-6 (7/5), 4-6, 7-5
Polona Hercog (SLO) bt Aliaksandra Sasnovich (BLR x32) 4-6, 6-2, 8-6
Rebecca Peterson (SWE) bt Yulia Putintseva (KAZ) 6-3, 7-5
Donna Vekic (CRO x23) bt Liudmila Samsonova (RUS) 6-2, 6-4
Johanna Konta (GBR x26) bt Antonia Lottner (GER) 6-4, 6-4
Lauren Davis (USA) bt Kristyna Pliskova (CZE) 6-2, 6-4
Viktoria Kuzmova (SVK) bt Alize Cornet (FRA) 6-4, 6-3
Kiki Bertens (NED x4) bt Pauline Parmentier (FRA) 6-3, 6-4
Shelby Rogers (USA) bt Astra Sharma (AUS) 6-3, 6-3
Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP x28) bt Dayana Yastremska (UKR) 2-6, 7-6 (7/0), 6-0
Elise Mertens (BEL x20) bt Tamara Zidansek (SLO) 6-4, 3-6, 6-2
Diane Parry (FRA) bt Vera Lapko (BLR) 6-2, 6-4
Mandy Minella (LUX) bt Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (RUS) 6-4, 6-2
Anastasija Sevastova (LAT x12) bt Luksika Kumkhum (THA) 6-1, 6-4
Veronika Kudermetova (RUS) bt Caroline Wozniacki (DEN x13) 0-6, 6-3, 6-3
Zarina Diyas (KAZ) bt Audrey Albie (FRA) 6-2, 6-2
Zhang Shuai (CHN) bt Varvara Lepchenko (USA) 6-1, 6-1
Kaia Kanepi (EST) bt Julia Goerges (GER x18) 7-5, 6-1
