Number one seed Caroline Wozniacki overcame an early slip to win her opening match at the Family Circle Cup against Barbora Zahlavova Strycovia in Charleston.
Danish top seed comes through with ease in Charleston
Number one seed Caroline Wozniacki overcame an early slip to win her opening match at the Family Circle Cup against Barbora Zahlavova Strycovia in Charleston.
The Danish top seed slipped 3-4 behind in the opening set of her match on the unusual green clay at Daniel Island, but the world number two hit back to level.
Wozniacki had to get t hrough three deuces on her own serve before holding and then breaking Zahlavova-Strycovia to win the first set.
Her Czech Republic opponent could not get into the second set though and Wozniacki was able to canter to a 6-4 6-1 success.
"She got a lot of balls back, and I just needed to find my game and find a way how to beat her, and once I did that, I won a lot of points and I won the games," said Wozniacki, who is coming off a win in Florida last week.
Wozniacki will now face number 16 seed Patty Schnyder of Switzerland after she disposed of Portugal's Michelle Larcher De Brito 6-3 6-1.
Third-seed Victoria Azarenka of Belarus was forced to pull out of her match against qualifier Christina McHale due to a hamstring injury.
The world number nine was leading the American qualifier 6-2 2-2 before she was forced to limp out after pulling the left hamstring she injured last week in Marbella.
"It's not that bad, but I hoped that it's probably got better, you know, and healed," she said. "It obviously didn't today, but you know, I just need to keep rehabbing it."
Japan's Ayumi Morita also had to concede her second round match against Daniel Hantuchova due to a thigh strain, with the Slovakian already leading 6-4 2-0.
In other second-round matches, Vera Dushevina of Russia defeated Chang Kai-chen of Chinese Taipei 6-2, 6-2, while Russian Evgeniya Rodina came through against Michaella Krajicek 6-3 2-6 6-2.
