Top-ranked Ash Barty won her first clay match in two years in Charleston on Wednesday, easing past Japan’s Misaki Doi 6-2, 6-1 in the WTA’s Volvo Car Open.
Barty, fresh off her win in Miami, looked in good shape as she moved bot the clay season.
“There was an adjustment period, without a doubt,” Barty said.
“It was a very quick turnaround from Miami, just had a couple of hours of practice. I was, honestly, just hoping I didn’t trip and fall over trying to slide. But it came back quite naturally. So really happy to be back here, particularly in Charleston, but back on clay.”
Others did not go so well on the clay surface. Second seed Sofia Kenin lost to fellow American Lauren Davis 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
No.5 seed Belinda Bencic lost in three sets to Spain’s Paula Badosa, 6-2, 6-7 (2), 6-1 and No.7 seed Elise Mertens fell to Alize Cornet 7-5, 6-3.
Coco Gauff fared better, beating Russia’s Liudmila Samsonova 4-6, 6-1, 6-4.
The Volvo Car Open was cancelled in 2020 due to the covid pandemic.
Elena Rybakina dodged a bullet on Wednesday, saving two match points to stay in the…
The Madrid Masters lost a third major drawcard in 24 hours on Wednesday, with world…
Andrey Rublev called a halt to the winning run of Carlos Alcaraz at the Madrid…
Top seed Jannik Sinner is taking his progress at the Madrid Masters step by step…
Rafael Nadal played his final match at the Madrid Masters on Tuesday with the king…
Jannik Sinner's existing hip pain problem proved to be a minor distraction as the top…