Only hours after her sister Serena exited, Venus Williams was also shown the door at the 2008 French Open.
Clay court specialist Flavia Pennetta beat the defending Wimbledon champion in straight sets 7-5, 6-3.
It was a momentous victory for the Italian veteran, who is slowly working to rebuild her Sony Ericsson WTA Tour ranking after a difficult 2007 season. She has already won two titles on clay this season and displayed on Friday the skills that led her to a career-high ranking of No. 16 in the world during 2006.
Earlier in the day, Serena Williams was upset in three sets by Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia.
