2021 Wimbledon: Ashleigh Barty advances to the third round
Women's singles world number one Ashleigh Barty sealed victory against Anna Blinkova to advance to the third round of 2021 Wimbledon. Barty won the second-round match 6-4, 6-3 in straight sets. The 2019 French Open winner was tested by Blinkova before prevailing. Meanwhile, Magda Linette has overcome No.3 seed and 2019 semi-finalist Elina Svitolina (6-3, 6-3). Here are further details.
How did the match pan out?
Blinkova made a strong start against Barty, breaking her to go 2-0 up. However, the Aussie international kept up and broke Blinkova before the score headed to 5-4. Barty served out to love. In the second set, Barty gained an early 2-1 lead before Blinkova broke back and made it 3-3. Barty was made to work hard by Blinkova as she held on.
Barty improves her Wimbledon tally to 7-4
This is just the third occasion where Barty has reached the third round of the Wimbledon. Her best record here is a fourth-round exit in 2019. Barty now has a 7-4 win-loss record at Wimbledon. Overall, she has a 55-19 win-loss record at Grand Slams after this victory. In 2021, Barty has won seven Grand Slam matches across surfaces.
Badosa and Sakkari book their places in the third round
2021 French Open quarter-finalist Paula Badosa reached the third round of Wimbledon by beating Yulia Putintseva 6-4, 6-1 in straight sets. Spain's Badosa will take on Magda Linette in the next round. Meanwhile, 15th seed and French Open semi-finalist Maria Sakkari secured a hard-fought win over Shelby Rogers to progress. Sakkari won the match 7-5, 6-4.
Wins for Krejcikova and Pavlyuchenkova
2021 French Open winner Barbora Krejcikova advanced to the third round of the 2021 Wimbledon. Krejcikova had to fight hard against Andrea Petkovic in straight sets, winning 7-5, 6-4. Meanwhile, 2021 French Open runner-up Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova sealed a convincing victory against Kristyna Pliskova. The former won 6-3, 6-3 in straight sets and will face 19th seed Karolína Muchova in the third round.
Third seed Svitolina suffers early exit
After exiting the third round of the 2021 French Open, Svitolina's poor form continued. She was nowhere near to her standards in her defeat against Linette. Ukraine's Svitolina now has a 69-34 win-loss record at Slams, besides 11-8 at Wimbledon, suffering a third second-round exit.
