Kerber and Konta cruise into Aus Open second round

Related Story: Petulant Vandeweghe goes bananas in on-court Aus Open tantrumRelated Story: Belinda Bencic dumps Venus Williams in Australian Open first round upset

Former Australian Open champion Angelique Kerber has cruised into the second round, dropping just four games in her opening match against compatriot Anna-Lena Friedsam.

The 2016 champion pounced on Friedsam's shaky service game, breaking six times on her way to a 6-0, 6-4 victory on Hisense Arena.

The 29-year-old German will meet the winner of Donna Vekic and Nao Hibino in the second round as she seeks her third grand slam title.

British tennis star Johanna Konta has advanced to the second round of the Australian Open, breezing to a straight-sets win over Madison Brengle.

After nine of 10 American female players bowed out on day one — including Sloane Stephens, Venus Williams and CoCo Vandeweghe — Brengle could not stem the US outflow as she succumbed 6-3, 6-1 to the British ninth seed.

External Link: AusOpen tweets As cool as you like! She was made to work for it, but [6] @KaPliskova is through to 2R after a 6-3 6-4 win over Veronica Cepede Royg

Konta served just the one ace but enjoyed a 75 per cent win rate on her highly accurate first service in a match where she clobbered 20 winners to Brengle's solitary effort.

Sixth-seeded Czech Karolina Pliskova had to work a little harder, but also won in straight sets against Paraguay's Veronica Cepede Royg.

Pliskova won out 6-3, 6-4 despite some trouble with her first serve, but still reeled off 28 winners.

French eighth seed Caroline Garcia took 90 minutes to defeat Germany's Carina Witthoeft, winning 7-5, 6-3.

There was some success for the Americans as Bernarda Pera beat Russian qualifier Anna Blinkova 6-2, 6-2, while Spain's Lara Arruabarrena eased past the Netherlands' Richel Hogenkamp 6-1, 6-2 in under an hour.

More to come.

International women's results

• Angelique Kerber (GER) def Anna-Lena Friedsam (GER) 6-0, 6-4
• Johanna Konta (ENG) def Madison Brengle (USA) 6-3, 6-1
• Maria Sharapova (RUS) def Tatjana Maria (GER) 6-1, 6-4
• Lucie Safarova (CZE) def Ajla Tomljanovic (AUS) 7-5, 6-3
• Caroline Garcia (FRA) def Carina Witthoeft (GER) 7-5, 6-3
• Karolina Pliskova (CZE) def Veronica Cepede Royg (PAR) 6-3, 6-4
• Barbora Strycova (CZE) def Kristie Ahn (USA) 6-1, 7-5
• Bernarda Pera (USA) def Anna Blinkova (RUS) 6-2, 6-2
• Lara Arruabarrena (SPA) def Richel Hogenkamp (NED) 6-1, 6-2
• Marketa Vondrousova (CZE) def Kurumi Nara (JAP) 7-5, 6-4

Original Article

[contf] [contfnew]

ABC .net

[contfnewc] [contfnewc]