US Open: Swiatek beats Pavlyuchenkova to reach fourth round
New York: World number one Iga Swiatek cruised into the fourth round of the US Open on Saturday, beating 27th-ranked Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-4, 6-2.
Swiatek, the 2022 US Open champion whose five titles this year include a fourth French Open crown, was largely untroubled in the potentially tricky encounter against the former French Open runner-up, who has seven other Grand Slam quarter-final appearances on her resume.
Pavlyuchenkova, stung by a 6-0, 6-0 loss to Swiatek in their only prior meeting on the Rome clay last year, put up a stronger fight.
Swiatek broke in the opening game on the way to a 3-1 lead, but Pavlyuchenkova dug in to keep her in sight, holding serve in a four-deuce game to pull within 4-3.
But Swiatek's advantage stood up, and she served out the set with a love game without facing a break point.
Swiatek was even more dominant in the second set -- perhaps irked at a ball from Pavlyuchenkova into her body on the first point of the set.
She broke Pavlyuchenkova at love for a 2-1 lead and backed it up with a confident hold then broke again as she coasted to the finish line.
She'll meet 16th-seeded Liudmila Samsonova of Russia for a place in the quarter-finals.