NEW YORK: Polish fourth seed Agnieszka Radwanska took just 47 minutes to hand out a 6-1, 6-0 US Open first round rout to Canada’s Sharon Fichman on Monday.
Radwanska allowed her 112th-ranked opponent just three points in the second set.
The 25-year-old Pole, who has never got beyond the fourth round in New York, goes on to face either Peng Shuai or Zheng Jie, who face-off in an all Chinese duel, for a place in the third round.
Halep survives US Open scare against amateur Collins
Second-seeded Simona Halep rallied from a set down to beat a young American making her Grand Slam debut in the first round of the US Open.
The Romanian won 6-7 (2), 6-1, 6-2 on Monday over 20-year-old Danielle Rose Collins. As a sophomore at Virginia, Collins earned a wild card into the US Open with her run to the NCAA title as an unseeded player.
Halep next faces Jana Cepelova of Slovakia for a spot in the third round.
The French Open runner-up, Halep reached a career-high ranking of No. 2 this month. She has never advanced past the fourth round at the US Open.
Sixth-seeded Angelique Kerber also needed three sets to outlast qualifier Ksenia Pervak 6-2, 3-6, 7-5. Kerber was down a break in the third set.
Meanwhile, the first round of men’s singles at the U.S. Open is divided up over three days and, with the absence of Rafael Nadal, the tournament can’t showcase one of the men’s “big three” each day. On Monday, No. 1 seed Novak Djokovic gets the night session while No. 2 seed Roger Federer is scheduled for Tuesday. That leaves No. 6 seed Tomas Berdych and No. 7 Grigor Dimitrov as the highest seeds remaining for the conclusion of the first round on Wednesday. (Agencies)
