Former champion Naomi Osaka has made quick work of second-round opponent Camila Giorgi 6-1 6-2 at the U.S. Open on Thursday (NZ time), in a lopsided matchup at the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
A dominant Osaka came roaring out of the gate, winning the first five straight games in near-pristine form, committing just four unforced errors in the first set and winning 10 of her 12 first-serve points.
Osaka, who was forced to withdraw from her Western and Southern Open final last week with a left hamstring injury, walked onto the court with her left leg wrapped in medical tape but showed no signs of fatigue during the match, firing off four aces and forcing her opponent into 24 errors.
"My serve was pretty good," the 22-year-old said after the match. "I'm really happy with my attitude. I thought I was really positive throughout."
Earlier, women's top seed Karolina Pliskova was knocked out of by France's Caroline Garcia.
World No. 3 Pliskova, runner-up in 2016, lost 6-1 7-6 (7-2) to the world number 50, who will face American Jennifer Brady in the next round.
Pliskova was the highest ranked player here in the absence of Australian Ashleigh Barty and Romania's Simona Halep.
Meanwhile, Petra Kvitova overcame a bout of nerves and a rocky start to defeat Kateryna Kozlova 7-6(3) 6-2.
"I was really fighting a little bit [with] the opponent but with myself as well. There was a lot of nerves over there," she says.
"So I was really fighting and, you know, was really tight, and I made some easy mistakes."
The twice Wimbledon champion committed a fifth double fault to hand Kozlova a break point and a 3-2 lead in the first set but recovered to save set point at 5-4 and eventually took the opener on a tiebreak.
She got back on track in the second set to break Kozlova's serve in the first game before firing off consecutive aces and a pair of winners en route to a 2-0 lead.
A relieved Kvitova, who dropped only one point on serve in the second set, wrapped up victory with a powerful serve that a beleaguered Kozlova was unable to return.
She will next face American Jessica Pegula in the third round.
Reuters
