Laura Robson digs deep to set up Agnieszka Radwanska meeting

 

Paul Newman
Monday 06 May 2013 01:48 BST
Comments
Laura Robson had won just two matches in six tournaments before beating Rybarikova
Laura Robson had won just two matches in six tournaments before beating Rybarikova

Laura Robson has not enjoyed the best of times since her stunning victory over Petra Kvitova in the Australian Open in January but the 19-year-old Briton showed great resilience to win her opening match in Madrid. Despite losing the first set to Slovakia's Magdalena Rybarikova, Robson recovered to beat the world No 48 6-7, 6-2, 6-2.

Robson had won only two matches in six tournaments after her return from Melbourne and also suffered disappointment as a member of Britain's losing Fed Cup team in Buenos Aires last month. She made a slow start against Rybarikova, although she recovered from two breaks down to lead 6-5 in the first set before losing the tie-break 7-4.

The Briton's erratic serve has been a problem recently, but from 2-2 in the second set she found a rich vein of form, winning eight games in a row before securing victory after two hours and 13 minutes. Nevertheless, she will do well to make further progress. Her next opponent is the world No 4, Agnieszka Radwanska, who beat Tsvetana Pironkova 6-2, 6-4.

Serena Williams, whose sister Venus has pulled out of the tournament with a back injury, made a sluggish start before overcoming Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva 7-6, 6-1 to earn a second-round meeting with Spain's Lourdes Dominguez-Lino. Williams, who is the defending champion, is seeking her fourth title of the year following her victories in Brisbane, Miami and Charleston. "I felt a little sluggish but I'm happy I was able to win," Williams said.

Caroline Wozniacki suffered her second successive first-round defeat when she was beaten 6-2, 6-4 by Yaroslava Shvedova. Wozniacki, now the world No 10, found some form two months ago with her run to the final in Indian Wells but will need to rediscover it again if she is not to slip further down the rankings.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in