GSTAAD, Switzerland - In a rematch of the 2010 French Open final, Australia's Samantha Stosur defeated Italy's Francesca Schiavone in the first round of the Ladies' Championship Gstaad on Tuesday, 6-3, 6-2.

The two veterans were meeting for the 14th times in their decorated careers in the Swiss Alps, but it was the Aussie who scored her fourth straight win in the head-to-head as the two took the court together for the first time in four years.

"We've played each other many, many times, but not for a long time. It's hard to get a feel for the match," Stosur said after the match.

"We were getting the feel of what we were going to do, and then once I got the first break I was able to really jump ahead and keep my lead."

Stosur broke serve a total of four times over the course of the encounter, as she pulled away for the victory following tightly contested early games.

The two Grand Slam champions went with serve over the first six games, as the 2011 US Open champion saved the lone break point of the early action when serving in the fourth game.

The Aussie won the final four games of the opening set to win her seventh straight set against the former World No.4, and her run extended to seven straight as she built a 3-0 lead in the second.

Schiavone stayed in touch from there with some clutch play on break points, as she saved one in each of her next two service games.

However, Stosur never allowed the Italian another look at a break point after erasing one chance in the third game, highlighting an area where she dominated in the match: the World No.73 won 80% of the points played behind her first serve and hit five aces.

"I enjoy playing with topspin, and in the altitude, it kind of helps," Stosur assessed. "My kick serve gets up even higher, so it's good for me, but it still doesn't make it easier. Everybody's ball is also jumping, so it's really difficult."

Though the Italian's ranking has dropped to World No.391 this season, the 38-year-old was not ready to go down without a fight, as she saved three match points in the final game of the match before surrendering serve for a final time.

Up next for the 34-year-old will be another veteran in the form of 39-year-old Patty Schnyder. The Swiss former World No.7 was given a wildcard for the main draw on home soil and defeated qualifier Kathinka von Deichmann, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in her first round on Tuesday.

The two will meet for the first time in seven years in the second round, having split four career meetings dating back to 2005.

"I haven't watched her play for a verylong time since she came back," Stosur said. "It's nice to see her back. She was always a very difficult player to play against, as a left-hander with the spin, so I will have to play well."