Naomi Osaka recovered from a first set defeat to reach the second round in Nottingham, while CoCo Vandeweghe shook off serve struggles to do the same in Hertogenbosch.
Vandeweghe, the top seed in the Netherlands and the highest ranked player in action this week at No. 16, put just 53 percent of first serves in play but was nevertheless too much for Aliaksandra Sasnovich, 6-2, 7-6, in a rematch from November’s Fed Cup final. Osaka, meanwhile, the No. 3 seed in the Midlands, won only 50 percent of points on her serve in the first set before rebounding to top Sachia Vickery 3-6, 6-1, 6-2.
The 20-year-old had just three aces and made only 58 percent of first serves across the match, but took advantage of a similarly erratic Vickery — she won just two first serve points in the second set — and converted five of eight break points in the final two frames.
Osaka, the defending champion at Indian Wells, where she beat Vickery in the third round, seems poised for a better run on grass this season than last, when she was blown off the court in the first round of Nottingham and was just 4-4 across four events.
She next faces Denisa Allertova, who beat Kristie Ahn 6-3, 6-1 in less than an hour. No. 2 seed Magdalena Rybarikova dropped the second set to Romanian qualifier Gabriela Ruse after a 6-0 opener, but recovered to win the third, 6-1. Eighth seed Camila Giorgi, however, fell to Dalila Jakupovic in straight sets.
Back in Hertogenbosch, Vandeweghe faced just four break points despite her serve issues. It was Sasnovich who encountered more difficulty, facing 18 break points and winning a middling 58 percent of first serve points. That hurt the Belarussian in a 39-minute first set, and though she saved six match points late in the second set, Vandeweghe won the first five points of the tiebreaker to cruise home.
The American, who lost in the first round of the event last year, will meet Arantxa Rus in the second round. Also Monday, No. 6 seed Alison Van Uytvanck eased past Richel Hogenkamp 6-1, 6-2.
