Seventh seeded Karolina Pliskova needed three sets to make it to round three while Naomi Osaka and Elina Svitolina were easy winners in their second round matches on Thursday at the 2019 Australian Open.
Pliskova, who was a quarter-finalist at both, the 2017 and 2018 Australian Open, fell behind to Madison Brengle, losing the first set 6-4. However, once she found her rhythm, her game fell back to place and the Czech lost just one game over the next two sets to clinch the encounter.
She won 4-6, 6-1, 6-0 to make it to the third round where she will play Italy’s Camila Giorgi. Giorgi dropped just two games in her demolition of Iga Swiatek in her round two match.
Osaka, seeded fourth and gunning to achieve a rare feat of winning two Grand Slams in a row after Serena Williams did that way back in 2015, wasn’t tested too much in her 6-2, 6-4 win over Tamara Zidansek.
In fact it might have been an easier win for Osaka had it not been for a surprise break of serve for Zidansek in the second set but the American US Open winner came back strongly to break back twice and complete the formalities.
Osaka will now face Su-wie Hsieh in their third round match, after she overcame Laura Siegemund in straight sets as well.
Sixth seeded Elina Svitolina has been in some of the most brilliant form of her career and she continued her solid run with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Viktoria Kuzmova. This was after she had beaten Viktorija Golubic by dropping just three games in the process.
Svitolina, who has never gone beyond the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam tournament, will now be up against the winner of Zhang Shuai and Kristyna Pliskova.
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