Azarenka and Mertens through to Ostrava Open next round

Victoria Azarenka and Elise Mertens are through to the next round of Ostrava Open following victories over Anisimova and Krejcikova.

The first match of the day in Ostrava was a clash between Mertens and Anisimova. The 73-minute affair ended with Mertens emerging as victorious 6-2 6-3. The start of the match was dominated by Mertens who quickly broke Anisimova to take the lead. She continued playing well while the American struggled so she added another break winning the opening set 6-2. Anisimova had two break points to try disrupting Mertens but she failed to use either. The 2nd set opened with similar struggled for Anisimova who had to save early break points which she did.

She wasn't very lucky in the next service game which she lost giving Mertens another lead which she deserved. She struggled herself in the next game allowing Anisimova two break points but once again the American failed to use either. After that, it was a rather quick journey towards the end of the match. Anisimova didn't have it today and Mertens ended the match with another break. All in all a good start for Mertens against Anisimova who has played poorly for a few months now.

The 2nd match was a delight for the home crowd as native Krejcikova faced off against Azarenka. They last clashed at the Roland Garros where the Czech player scored a stunning upset over Azarenka. The start of this match looked eerily similar to that match as well. Azarenka once again struggled against Krejcikova giving her two breaks in the 1st set which she lost 6-2. Krejcikova troubled Azarenka with very good defensive play and strong baseline play when serving.

The 2nd set opened similar to the 1st one with Azarenka struggling on her own serve having to serve multiple break points in both opening games. The first break points Azarenka earned were in the next game and clinically the Belarussian used them to take a 3-1 lead. Azarenka continued playing well and holding the lead despite Krejcikova having several chances to pull it back. Ultimately she stepped up her game, even more, to break Barbora once more clinching the 2nd set 6-2.

The 3rd set opened with Azarenka having the upper hand being more decisive in rallies and playing overall better. She failed to use the first break points she had but she finally broke Krejcikova in a later game taking a 4-1 lead. After that, she quickly proceeded to end the match with the final set victory 6-1. The match lasted well over two hours and the end result was 2-6 6-2 6-1.