Katie Boulter gives creditable performance in Aryna Sabalenka defeat at Australian Open
Written by News on 16/01/2019
British No 2 Katie Boulter was knocked out of the Australian Open in the second round by in-form 11th seed Aryna Sabalenka in Melbourne.
The 22-year-old defeated Ekaterina Makarova to record her first overseas main draw Grand Slam singles victory on Monday, but was then beaten 6-3 6-4 by Sabalenka.
Boulter produced a creditable performance against her hard-hitting opponent from Belarus and matched one of the pre-tournament favourites for the majority of the contest.
The world No 97 broke Sabalenka in the opening game of the match but was broken back immediately and then lost her serve a second time in the sixth game of the first set as the Belarusian took command.
Sabalenka, who won in Shenzhen earlier in the month, broke in the third game of the second set and her composure on serve and big-hitting from the baseline saw her reach the third round in commanding fashion.
The 20-year-old will next meet American teenager Amanda Anisimova.
Defending champion Caroline Wozniacki eased into the third round with a 6-1 6-3 victory over Swede Johanna Larsson.
Wozniacki trailed 5-1 in the third set of her second-round encounter last year and faced two match points against Jana Fett before pulling off a miracle recovery.
Maria Sharapova, who won the event in 2008, recorded a comprehensive 6-2 6-1 victory over Sweden’s Rebecca Peterson to maintain her blistering start in Melbourne and set up an intriguing encounter against Wozniacki.
The five-time Grand Slam champion has dropped only three games from her opening two matches and sealed victory against the world No 64 just before 12.40am on Thursday morning after a late evening start.
Asked about her meeting with Wozniacki, the former world No 1 said: “That’s a tough third round. There’s no secret she loves playing out here.
“I’ve set up the challenge and I’ll need to go out there and take it.”
Second seed Angelique Kerber dominated Brazilian qualifier Beatriz Haddad Maia to easily reach the next round.
The Wimbledon champion produced a clinical display to advance 6-2 6-3 in humid conditions.
“It was a tough match, she played really well and I knew that I had to play my best tennis,” the three-time Grand Slam champion said.
Sloane Stephens also recorded a comprehensive 6-3 6-1 victory against Timea Babos and stressed her desire to improve her record at Melbourne Park.
The 2017 US Open champion had lost in the first round on her three previous visits but the American avoided an upset against her former doubles partner.
“I haven’t won a match here in how long?” Stephens said. “I’m kind of conquering all the places where I’ve been terrible. Asia. I’ve won a few matches there (reaching the decider at the WTA Finals in Singapore). And here, I played well today.
“I know I haven’t done too well here in the last couple of years, so to do well is nice. I’m putting the emphasis on starting the year on a good foot.”
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(c) Sky News 2019: Katie Boulter gives creditable performance in Aryna Sabalenka defeat at Australian Open
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