Mladenovic beats Garcia in French grudge match

Shanghai  - Unseeded Kristina Mladenovic defeated her former playing partner Caroline Garcia in a French grudge match at the Zhengzhou Open on Wednesday.

The duo, whose successful pairing saw them win the French Open women's doubles in 2016, split a year later after Garcia called time on the teaming.

Mladenovic later said that she was disappointed at the way Garcia broke the news of the split to her.

But the 26-year-old got a very small measure of revenge in central China with a 7-5, 6-2 victory in their last-16 clash.

They shared an awkward exchange at the net at the end, with Garcia appearing initially to decline kissing her opponent on the cheeks.

The defeated Garcia, 25, was the eighth seed in Zhengzhou.