Sabalenka defeated Vondrousova 7-5, 6-1
Belarusian to meet Raducanu
Elsewhere, Anisimova will face Anna Kalinskaya
Aryna Sabalenka will face Emma Raducanu in the third round of the Cincinnati Open after registering a 7-5 6-1 victory over Marketa Vondrousova on Saturday.
Sabalenka skipped the Canadian Open in order to manage her fatigue after a semi-final exit at Wimbledon, and she initially showed signs of rust in the opening set.
Vondrousova – the 2023 Wimbledon champion – generated five break points in the first set, but she failed to take any of them before giving up serve in the final game.
Sabalenka grasped the initiative from there, recording successive breaks either side of a tense, four-deuce hold in the second set, as Vondrousova wilted.
The three-time grand slam champion said afterwards: "It's always a tough match against her.
"She always pushes me to the limit. You have to stay focused, and you have to fight for every point against her."
Sabalenka will face Raducanu – who is seeded for a WTA 1000 event for the first time since 2022 – in the next round, after the Brit overcame Olga Danilovic earlier in the day.
The player that beat Sabalenka in the Wimbledon semi-finals, Amanda Anisimova, was granted a walkover as Leolia Jeanjean withdrew due to a calf injury.
Anisimova will face Anna Kalinskaya, who beat Peyton Stearns in three sets in round two, at the next stage.
Data Debrief: Sabalenka survives the pressure
Sabalenka faced 12 break points versus Vondrousova, saving all of them, with the match proving far tougher than the final scoreline suggested.
She is just the second player to face 10 or more break points and not give up a single one in a WTA 1000 match this season, after Liudmila Samsonova (11 against Lulu Sun in Doha).
The Belarusian has now won 25 WTA 1000 matches while top of the world rankings, becoming the fifth player to reach that figure since the format's 2009 introduction, after Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka, Ashleigh Barty and Iga Swiatek.
