Shocks galore occurred on day 2 of the ASB Classic with top seed Venus Williams and second seed Ana Ivanovic making swift exits from the tournament.
Defending champion Williams faced Russian teenager Daria Kasatkina in her first round encounter. Kasatkina is currently ranked 75th in the world and shot to fame in 2014 after winning the French Open Girls title. Despite the lack of experience, the 18-year-old impressed many with her gutsy 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-3, win.
The marathon encounter consisted of Williams being constantly being placed under pressure by her younger rival. In the first set Williams was the first player to lose her service in the seventh game when Kasatkina successfully converted her first break point of the match. The top seed responded in typical Williams fashion by breaking back immediately to nudge proceedings towards a tiebreak. Similar to the opening set, the tiebreaker was a tense occasion as the top seed broke the Russian two consecutive times to win the first set.
After taking the first set, many expected Williams to pull away from her less experienced rival, however, Kasatkina had other plans. Breaking the American once more, the 18-year-old swiftly opened up a 3-0 lead. Williams was unable to find a solution to her Russian problem, who extended the lead to 5-1 after breaking the American to love as she gradually forced the match into a final set.
It was a case of what might have been for Williams, who experienced a disappointing third set. After racing to a 3-1 lead, The world No.7 was broken three consecutive times as Kasatkina won six straight games to grab the biggest win of her young career.
The error-stricken performance from Williams consisted of an agonizing 73 unforced errors. Nevertheless, a shocked Kasatkina praised Williams after getting the biggest win in her career.
“I couldn’t ask for a better start to the year”. The 18-year-old said.
“She is an amazing tennis player and I respect her so much. It was an unbelievable match for me.”
Williams wasn’t the only upset of the day. Second seed Ana Ivanovic was knocked out in straight sets by British qualifier Naomi Broady. The Brit came into the match with a big confidence boost after defeating top seed Magdaléna Rybáriková in the final round of the qualifying draw. Ivanovic had a golden opportunity to take the first set after she broke for a chance to serve at 5-4 up. The Serbian was unable to serve it out as Broady broke back immediately as she won three straight games to take the first set.
The second set was tense with no breaks of service in the first nine games. Serving a down a set and 4-5, Ivanovic went behind 15-40, giving Broady her first two match points. Ivanovic successfully defended the both of them, but it wasn’t enough to deny the Brit, who converted with her third chance.
During the match, Broady won 67% of her service points compared to Ivanovic’s 54%. Speaking about her loss to Broady, Ivanovic admitted that she was ‘caught off guard’ by the Brit,.
“She served well and I also thought with the ground strokes, she was hitting them extremely well. So many times I was caught off guard and didn’t know which way she was going”. Ivanovic said.
“I felt that once I managed to get into rallies I was on top of her, but it didn’t happen as often as I hoped”.
After the duo of shocks, there was better news for third seed Caroline Wozniacki after she defeated Danka Kovinic 6-4, 6-4. Seventh seed Barbora Strycova also enjoyed a straight sets win over Dutch player Kiki Bertens (6-2, 6-4). Finally, Tamira Paszek spent almost three hours on the court before defeating former French Open champion Francesca Schiavone 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-3.
