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Poland's Iga Swiatek returns the ball against Bernarda Pera of the U.S. at the Madrid Open tennis tournament in Madrid, Spain, Sunday, April 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez) |
The world No. 1 conceded only one break point and converted
on four of the 13 that she earned against the 32nd-ranked American at the
“Magic Box” center court.
Swiatek had beaten Julia Grabher by the same score in her
opening match in Madrid. The Polish player has won six straight matches in her
clay-court season while dropping only one set.
“I wouldn’t say it was easy,” Swiatek said. “Every match is
tricky here. I’m happy that I’m getting my rhythm. Playing against a lefty is
never easy ... but I’m pretty happy that I was disciplined and focused.”
Swiatek will next play either 22nd-seeded Zheng Qinwen or
16th-seeded Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Third-seeded Jessica Pegula had to work harder on her way to
a 6-4, 7-6 (2) win over Marie Bouzkova. The American saved 12 of the 14 break
opportunities that she conceded against her 31st-ranked opponent.
“It was definitely a long, physical game,” Pegula said.
“It’s always hard to play Marie. We always have tough, long matches. I knew it
was going to be very difficult.”
In the men’s draw, two-time Madrid Open champion Alexander
Zverev cruised past qualifier Hugo Grenier 6-1, 6-0 in less than an hour.
Zverev lost last year’s final to Carlos Alcaraz, who could be his next opponent
in the Spanish capital. Alcaraz faces 26th-seeded Grigor Dimitrov later Sunday.
“Today I felt great,” Zverev said. “Maybe Hugo was a bit
nervous, first time in the third round at a Masters and that is big for any
player. In general I am happy that I kept my composure and that I am through.”
Zverev, who had 26 winners and broke Grenier’s serve six
times, won his Madrid titles in 2018 and ’21. He is 21-3 in the tournament,
having reached the quarterfinals in all five of his previous appearances.
Fifth-seeded Andrey Rublev improved to 10-1 on clay this
season with a 6-2, 7-5 win over Yoshihito Nishioka. Rublev, who reached the
quarterfinals in Madrid last year, won the Monte Carlo Masters two weeks ago.
He will next face Karen Khachanov, the 10th-seeded player
who defeated home-crowd favorite Roberto Bautista Agut 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 by winning
the final three games in a match that lasted almost three hours.
Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni