Impressive start for Zarina Diyas and Ajla Tomljanovic at Japan Open
Defending champion Zarina Diyas and Ajla Tomljanovic cruised into the second round of the Japan Open.
The sixth-seeded Diyas, who won her maiden WTA Tour trophy in Hiroshima last year, had no problems seeing off Sara Sorribes Tormo as she opened her campaign with a comfortable 6-2, 6-1 in one hour and seven minutes.
Meanwhile, the fifth-ranked Tomljanovic from Australia was also in impressive form as she secured a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Fiona Ferro.
She will face Lin Zhu next after the Chinese player beat Miyu Kato from Japan 7-6 (7-3), 6-2.
“I thought I played a pretty good match from start to finish,” Tomljanovic said after the match. “The conditions got a bit tough – it was windy and a cold – but it’s a really nice court. It feels a bit intimate. You can really hear the crowd.”
Eighth seed Magda Linette advanced with a 6-4, 6-1 defeat of Johanna Larsson and next up is Tamara Zidansek, who beat Arina Rodionova 6-4, 6-2 while American qualifier Amanda Anisimova booked her place in round two with a 6-1, 6-1 drubbing of Croatia’s Jana Fett.
Meanwhile, Nao Hibino accounted for Eugenie Bouchard’s early exit as the Japanese wildcard beat the Canadian 6-4, 6-4.
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