Garbiñe Muguruza activated champion mode this Wednesday in the second round of the US Open. The Spanish played a great game against Andrea Petkovic and he took revenge without acrimony on the German (“We are great friends”, revealed the Spanish), who had beaten him in their three confrontations: 6-4 and 6-2 in 89 minutes. Garbiñe was very solid, hitting with depth and precision, good in terms of mobility and defense. In debit, he missed three aces. They did not weigh him down because the rest and near the net also shone.
“We have trained many times together and we know each other, it is not easy to play against someone in those circumstances. When he beat me, I was very young, now I have more experience and I am a different player. He will face Azarenka, a three-time finalist in New York, on Friday, the last one last year. “I will see his game, because we like to know everything about the rivals,” he warned. Although you already know it well, because they have been measured four times, with two wins and one withdrawal for each.
👏 To the third round!
✅🎾 @GarbiMuguruza beats Andrea Petkovic (4-6 and 2-6) and is already in the third round of the @usopen.
📺💻📲 Have you seen it in @Eurosport_ES 2 and in the Eurosport APP.#USOpen pic.twitter.com/KoCRsXvx8R
– Eurosport.es (@Eurosport_ES) September 1, 2021
Muguruza’s start in each set was magnificent, with both 3-0 that made Petkovic’s task very difficult., always in tow and with the need to vary his game to try to surprise the caraqueña. That meant that he did not have a stable pattern of play in the face of Garbiñe’s order, rhythm and discipline, which was a steamroller, slow but very sure (only 14 unforced errors). The German woman threatened to react to the advantages of Muguruza, who stifled those attempts and despaired her colleague. Long rallies were most often seen by the No. 9 seed. And on the physical side, the specialty of a rock-hard, stringy Petkovic wasn’t far behind either. The Spanish, who complained about the lack of light on the track, covered by the rain, closed the victory with a right hand from a marker after a defensive balloon from her rival, the proof that he is in his most focused and motivated version, with the idea of finally finishing fourth in the only major in which he has not passed the eighth. “My mentality now is different, before I wanted to do everything perfectly and I was so obsessed that it did not allow to get the least of me. Now I do not feel that pressure when there is a failure, he managed well the difficulties that may arise during a match and also my physical condition is very good, “he explained.
Lots of Svitolina for Masarova
Rebeka Masarova, who starred in one of the best matches of the day on Monday, with victory in three tiebreaks and almost four hours against the Romanian Bogdan, could not with the fifth favorite of the tournament, Elina Svitolina, although it gave war in the second set. The Ukrainian won by 6-2 and 7-5 to the Spanish born in Basel, the city of Federer, of a Slovak father and a Spanish mother, who decided to compete for Spain in 2018 after being junior champion at Roland Garros 2016 under the Swiss flag. Svitolina, who uses her husband’s surname, Monfils, in her social networks, he played a very solvent game, with only 11 unforced errors. She will face the Czech Vondrousova or the Russian Kasatkina in the third round. The success of playing the US Open brings Masarova (22 years old) a rise of 55 places in the ranking, to 176, the best of his career, which will allow him to access the previews of the Grand Slams.
Results, table and schedules.