Double Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka cruised past to 6-1 6-2 in 63 minutes over Danka Kovinic from Montenegro at the Margaret Court Arena to get through to the third round at the Australian Open.
After winning with a double bagel over Alison Van Uytvanck in her first match 14th seed Azarenka continued her impressive campaign at the Australian Open dropping just three games against Kovinic in the second round. She has lost just 20 games since the start of the 2016 season including her triumph at the Brisbane International.
“I really don’t count the games. What really works for me is to stay in the moment. I enjoy my time on the court and I play every point like it’s my last”, said Azarenka
Azarenka hit 19 winners (including a huge forehand winner in the final game) to 9 unforced errors compared to Kovinic’s 11 wiiners and 22 unforced errors.
Azarenka dominated the match and never faced a single break point. Azarenka broke in the first game before getting two more breaks of serve to take the first set in 29 minutes. She broke serve in the sixth game to open up a 4-2 lead. Kovinic served to stay in the match at 2-5 but Azarenka broke serve again to seal the win.
The Belarussian star won 17 of 19 points at the net and 29 of 42 points from the baseline. Azarenka won 64 percent of her first serve points.
Azarenka will face 18-year-old Naomi Osaka from Japan who upset Elina Svitolina 6-4 6-4 to reach the third round in a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in her career. Azarenka could be on collision course with Garbine Muguruza in a possible fourth round blockbuster match.
“I want to keep improving from match to match. It’s just only going to get tougher, so I really want to keep that focus and that intensity and that determination. I am feeling in my best shape body-wise, spirit-wise, everything-wise. If you think about it, it’s my 12th year here. It’s a long time. I still feel young. and I still have a lot more years to play”, said Azarenka
