By Chris Oddo | Monday August 28, 2017
Garbine Muguruza and Petra Kvitova eased through in straight sets to book their places in the second round of the U.S. Open.
Photo Source: Richard Heathcote/Getty
The oddsmakers favorite and an emotional favorite made their way into the second round quickly on Day 1.
Third-seeded Garbiñe Muguruza and Petra Kvitova each managed tricky moments to emerge with straight-sets victories on Day 1.
Muguruza, who won Wimbledon, improved to 17-2 since the beginning of the Championships with a 6-0, 6-3 win over American Varvara Lepchenko. The Spaniard hit 16 winners against 11 unforced errors and won 20 of 24 first serve points to finish off Lepchenko in 63 minutes.
Muguruza is one of eight WTA player to begin the fortnight with a shot at emerging as the WTA’s No.1 by the end of next week.
"I'm happy," Muguruza said. "I started very well, and then the match was a little bit more equal, as I was expecting, and I keep myself composed and went for it."
The Spaniard says she isn't really bothered by the fact that she's the favorite. Having never been beyond the second-round she says she's just treating every match like it's her final.
"I don't really care, because I don't feel -- I don't feel I'm a favorite here, because I never really played very good," she said. "I did play good but just didn't go my way. I guess it's just based on the results. In the paper, people might think that. But you come here and with the conditions and the past, there are certain players that play better and certain players that don't. So far I'm just thinking that I'm happy that I'm in second round, and that's what I'm going to take."
She will face American qualifier Claire Liu or China’s Duan Ying-Ying in second-round action.
Kvitova, seeded 13, struggled at times with former U.S. Open finalist Jelena Jankovic, but the Czech emerged with a 7-5, 7-5 win in 90 minutes. Kvitova won only nine of 24 second-serve points but managed five breaks on eight opportunities to go with 28 winners (against 14 for Jankovic).
In nine previous appearance Kvitova has reached just one U.S. Open quarterfinal. She’ll face Frances Alizé Cornet in round two.