Former world No.1 Caroline Wozniacki has got off to a winning start at the Citi Open by easing past Japan’s Hiroko Kuwata 6-1, 6-1, in the first round.
The win was only Wozniacki’s third since returning to the tour last month after missing the entire clay court season due to an ankle injury. Facing lucky loser Kuwata in Washington, the world No.58 dominated proceedings throughout with the help of five aces and a 85% first service winning rate.
Wozniacki’s triumph has now set her up with a second round clash against top seed Samantha Stosur. The two-time grand slam champion also enjoyed a straightforward opening round with a 6-3, 6-0, win against Russian qualifier Alla Kudryavtseva. Despite grabbing the convincing win, Stosur struggled with her second serve throughout the match, managing to win just 25% of points (4/16). On the other hand, the Australian won an impressive 91% of her first service points.
The upcoming match between Wozniacki and Stosur will be their second meeting within the past month. In their first Wozniacki crushed her Australian opponent 6-2, 6-1, in the second round of the Eastbourne International. It will be their sixth meeting on a hardcourt in the tour with Stosur narrowly leading the head-to-head 3-2.
Elsewhere on the first day of the tournament, there was a duo of victories for seeded players Yania Wickmayer and Yulia Putintseva. Seventh seed Wickmayer battled back from 2-4 down in the first set to see off world No.55 Madison Keys 7-5, 6-4. Meanwhile, sixth seed Putintseva required over two hours to defeat qualifier Varvara Flink 7-5, 7-5.
China’s Shuai Zhang moved past her compatriot Lin Zhu 7-5, 6-4. The world No.62 broke her opponent six times in the match to grab her first main draw win since the French Open.
17-year-old Usue Maitane Arconada grabbed her first ever win on the WTA Tour by defeating Canada’s Francoise Abanda 7-6(3), 6-4. The Argentine-born American recently rose to prominence after winning the Wimbledon Girls’ doubles title with Claire Liu. She is currently ranked 11th in the world junior rankings and has one ITF $10,000 title to her name.
Arconada will play Putintseva in the second round.
