Ashleigh Barty got over a seed in the first round, coming from a set down and will look to continue that form against powerful Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich. Join The Roar for live scores from around 10am (AEST).
The Australian was tasked with 21st seed Ana Konjuh in the first round and after a shaky start, came away with a victory.
Up to 43 in the world, Barty will be pushing for a seeding at her home grand slam next year with a strong finish to the season and it’s matches like these she must win. Dangerous as they are, there are no excuses to fail here.
Dropping the first set to Konjuh 6-4, Barty appeared to be in the match but not on top, before she completely took over in a form reversal. She only dropped one game in the final sets, winning it 6-0, 6-1, with Konjuh unable to answer her serve, while Barty attacked her second serve off the court.
It was one of Barty’s better performances, but the Australian was in strong form during the lead-up as well, making the third round in Cincinnati and Toronto after a disappointing first round exit at Wimbledon.
Sasnovich, on the other hand, struggled in the lead up to the final grand slam of the year, but breezed past Julie Boserup in the first round.
After a second round exit in Bucharest, to go with a first round in Cincinnati and a failure to qualify last week in New Haven, it felt as if Sasnovich was in form that suggested she would get blown away from Flushing Meadows in the first round.
Playing Boserup though, her serve was the best it has been for some time, she moved well around the court and held it together consistently, being rewarded with 6-2, 6-2 victory.
Barty will be a whole new level of challenge though. The pair have never met before this match and the winner will face either Sloane Stephens or Dominika Cibulkova in the third round.
Prediction
Sasnovich has plenty of power and could get around Barty in that department, but if Barty moves around the court well, dictates on serve and plays to her potential, she should go through to the third round.
Barty in three sets.
Join The Roar for live scores of this match from around 10am (AEST) or at the completion of Petra Kvitova versus Alize Cornet on Court 13 and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.
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