#PetraKvitova was the first player through to the third round of the #MiamiOpen as her quest for the number one ranking continues at the Hard Rock Stadium. Defeating #MariaSakkari with a straightforward 6-1, 6-4 scoreline, the Czech looked impressive in this 69-minute encounter and looks to overturn her best record in Miami, which is a quarterfinal appearance back in 2014.
Sakkari, who earned her first win of the year outside the Slams against Olga Danilovic in a hard-fought match yesterday, could not replicate the result today as she was simply overpowered by the firing Czech, who left no mercy on the court today.
Both Kvitova and Sakkari suffered opening-round exits at the BNP Paribas Open last year, hence this match was crucial to both players in order to regain their confidence and form. Sakkari was stunned by Christina McHale while Kvitova lost despite owning a 6-3, 3-0 lead against Venus Williams.
Having never performed well in this tournament, perhaps the new tournament venue helped change Kvitova’s fortune as she blasted 16 winners to Sakkari’s four in this one-sided match. The world number two was excellent on serve, winning 71 percent and 65 percent of first and second serves respectively.
Kvitova strolls to take the one-sided opening frame
Ironically, it was Kvitova who first found herself in trouble after opting to serve to start the match. A couple of soft errors provided Sakkari with the early chance to take the lead, having earned multiple break points in the opening game. However, Kvitova was quick to rebound and she saved the break points with an ace and a forehand winner respectively. This turned out to be Sakkari’s only real opportunities in the entire first set.
Sakkari was struggling on her serves and failed to keep up the consistency of her groundstrokes, allowing Kvitova to earn the first breakthrough. The Czech was looking on fire as she moved fluidly around the court, and the pace of her shots proved too much for Sakkari who could not handle the intensity of baseline rallies.
Nonetheless, the Greek finally managed to get onto the scoreboard with a solid service hold as Kvitova started showing signs of inconsistencies. It did not faze Kvitova, though, who continued to blast through the opening set as she rattled off 12 of the last 16 points in the set to take it 6-1 after just 25 minutes of action.
Kvitova overcomes a huge scare
Sakkari started the second set in the best possible way, especially after that disastrous first set which saw her fail to put up any sort of resistance. She sent in some solid first serves to grab the confidence-boosting hold before Kvitova handed her a free break of serve with consecutive unforced errors. Claiming eight of the first 11 points, Sakkari’s confidence was given a huge boost but she was unable to consolidate the lead as Kvitova roared back into contention with her thunderous returns.
Kvitova stunningly went on a four-game trot as she seemed unstoppable and simply flew through the games without any hassle. Sakkari eventually stopped the rout in the seventh game but the Czech world number two was just too good on serve, losing just six service points after getting broken.
Sakkari served to stay in the match at 3-5 down and did exceptionally well to save a match point and remain in contention with some brave hitting and the courage to challenge Kvitova at the baseline. However, she was just delaying the inevitable as the third seed retrieved from a 0-30 deficit to successfully serve out the match and book a spot in the third round.
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