Aug 7, 2018; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Maria Sharapova of Russia hits a shot against Sesil Karatantcheva of Bulgaria (not pictured) in the Rogers Cup tennis tournament at IGA Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jean-Yves Ahern-USA TODAY Sports
August 8, 2018
Maria Sharapova’s first-round match at the Rogers Cup extended over two days, but it ended quickly.
The Russian veteran beat Bulgarian qualifier Sesil Karatantcheva 6-1, 6-2 on Tuesday in Montreal. The match had been suspended Monday due to rain and lightning with Sharapova ahead 4-1 in the first set.
“After getting a good, quick start, maybe the (rain) delay wasn’t exactly in my favor coming out on the court and having to wait for a long time,” Sharapova said. “I would have loved to finish last night to get a break today, but that’s not how things work. You have to adjust. I think I did a good job of finishing the job today.”
The match lasted just 83 minutes. Karatantcheva contributed to her demise by double-faulting 11 times without serving an ace. Sharapova converted four of her 11 break points without ever facing a break point on her own serve.
“I was aggressive, I served well throughout the match,” Sharapova said. “I think I did everything a little bit better, especially toward the end of the match. I haven’t played in a few weeks. No matter what tournament or who you’re playing against, you have to figure things out as you go. I think I did a good job of that today.”
Next up for Sharapova is a matchup with 12th-seeded Daria Kasatkina of Russia, who beat Greece’s Maria Sakkari 6-4, 4-6, 6-1.
Two seeded players dropped their opening-round matches Tuesday. Great Britain’s Johanna Konta eliminated 11th-seeded Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia 6-7 (6), 6-1, 6-2, and Spain’s Carla Suarez Navarro upset 16th-seeded Naomi Osaka of Japan 7-6 (2), 6-2.
“I played myself into the match and tried to be as tough as possible,” said Konta, who routed Serena Williams 6-1, 6-0 last week in San Jose, Calif. “(Ostapenko) has such a big game, so many big shots, sometimes you are spectator out there. When I had the opportunity to do the most I could, stay strong, I think I built up enough momentum. That’s why I was able to keep pushing through in the second and third.”
Other first-round winners included eighth-seeded Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic, 10th-seeded Julia Goerges of Germany, 14th-seeded Elise Mertens of Belgium and 15th-seeded Ashleigh Barty of Australia.
Sixth-seeded Caroline Garcia of France also advanced with a 4-6, 6-1, 6-3 win over Magdalena Rybarikova of Slovakia.
Mihaela Buzarnescu of Romania, who captured the San Jose championship for her first career WTA title, beat China’s Qiang Wang 6-2, 7-5.
–Field Level Media
