NEW YORK (Reuters) – History repeated itself as Belarusian second seed Aryna Sabalenka pummeled France’s Clara Burel 6-1 6-1 in the third round of the U.S. Open on Saturday, ending the unseeded player’s New York campaign in dominant fashion.
Sabalenka had swatted aside Burel in the third round a year ago and once again the Australian Open winner would not be denied as she fired off 22 winners in a brisk one-hour affair at Louis Armstrong Stadium.
The perennial major contender Sabalenka demoralised her opponent from the start, winning the first five straight games in the opening set, where she never faced a break point.
Burel showed some signs of life when she fended off a pair of break points in the opening game of the second set but Sabalenka quickly retook control.
A semi-finalist in New York the last two years, Sabalenka faced her only break point of the match in the sixth game of the second set but extinguished Burel’s chances with a well-placed drop shot.
Burel thrust her racquet to the ground in frustration after sending a forehand shot out in the final game of the second set, before Sabalenka broke her serve for the match with a backhand winner.
Sabalenka will next play the winner of a third-round match between 13th seed Daria Kasatkina and Belgian qualifier Greet Minnen.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by David Holmes)
