Wozniacki steadies to advance at Roland Garros

Troubled in the first set, Caroline Wozniacki eventually proved too strong for unseeded American Danielle Collins.

Published : May 28, 2018 22:01 IST

Caroline Wozniacki overcame a nervy start to ease into the second round of the French Open with a 7-6 (7-2) 6-1 win over Danielle Collins.

Unconvincing in lead-up clay tournaments in Madrid and Rome, the Australian Open champion was broken twice in a tight opening set and looked destined for a difficult outing on Court Philippe Chatrier.

But the second seed held her nerve in a tie-break and reeled off three straight games at the start of the second to set up a comfortable victory in one hour and 34 minutes.

Wozniacki's quest to better her quarter-final effort of 2017 began on a troublesome note as Collins broke at the first attempt, only for the unseeded American to drop serve herself in the following game.

Collins enjoyed breakthrough wins over Madison Keys at Indian Wells and Venus Williams in Miami earlier this year and appeared dangerous in her Roland Garros debut with aggressive stroke-making, but errors began to creep in and Wozniacki survived a crucial break point to go 6-5 ahead.

And the Dane made the momentum count with a mature performance in the tie-break, an unblemished serve underpinning a 7-2 success.

Buoyed by that effort, Wozniacki made a blistering start to the second with two breaks either side of a hold to love that saw her take complete control.

Collins eventually got on the board and, though she saw off one match point at 5-1 down, Wozniacki did not need a second invitation to tee up a meeting with Spanish qualifier Georgina Garcia Perez, who earlier beat Dalila Jakupovic 6-3 6-4.

STATISTICAL BREAKDOWN  

Wozniacki [2] bt Collins 7-6 (7-2) 6-1

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Wozniacki  – 20/13
Collins – 19/41

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Wozniacki  – 5/3
Collins –0/2

BREAK POINTS WON
Wozniacki  – 5/7
Collins – 2/4

FIRST SERVE PERCENTAGE
Wozniacki  – 64
Collins – 67

PERCENTAGE OF POINTS WON ON FIRST/SECOND SERVE
Wozniacki  – 66/56
Collins – 55/31

TOTAL POINTS
Wozniacki  – 76
Collins – 56

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment