Aryna Sabalenka, the second seed, secured a decisive victory over Japanese qualifier Moyuka Uchijima with a score of 6-2, 6-2 under the roof on Court Philippe-Chatrier on Thursday, advancing to the third round of the French Open.
Despite it being her first time playing in the second round of a Grand Slam tournament, Uchijima struggled to handle Sabalenka’s dominant serve and groundstrokes.
Sabalenka won six points in a row at the start of the match, but once Uchijima had overcome her nerves, she settled down against the Belarusian.
Uchijima held her serve, but when she trailed 3-2, Sabalenka pounced on a break point with a fierce winner before taking the first set in 29 minutes.
The Japanese No. 1 wore a somber expression during the changeover before the second set, and she had no answer to the power of Sabalenka, who also played some telling drop shots.
Uchijima afforded herself a smile when she got the better of the Belarusian in a long rally to make it 4-2, but Sabalenka refocused to save a break point before breaking the Japanese player’s serve to seal victory.
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