Pliskova zooms past Bogdan battle at US Open

NEW YORK CITY, NY, USA - No.8 seed Karolina Pliskova made quick work of her second round opponent, needing just 65 minutes to defeat Ana Bogdan and move on at the US Open.

Pliskova had to recover from a 0-3 deficit in the tightly-contested second set, but she completed the turnaround in emphatic fashion to win 6-2, 6-3.

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“I think I was just mentally not there in those first few games of the second set,” Pliskova told press afterwards. “Then I just came back to play the way that I was playing in the first set. That’s why I won six straight games after, only just a few bad moments. Overall I think it was pretty good today.”

Pliskova had plenty to be pleased about against Bogdan on Court 5, starting out very aggressive and reeling off five games in a row to break twice and take command of the match with the opening set.

But things started getting a bit complicated in the second, when Bogdan capitalized on a drop in energy from Pliskova to start the set with a 3-0 lead. The 2016 finalist didn’t seem troubled, and quickly righted the ship to reel off the next six games in a row and close out the match in just over an hour.

“The conditions were tough today, but I think yesterday it was a little bit worse,” Pliskova said. “I was used to it today because I like to practice during the time that I will have the match. I actually felt okay out there, thankfully the match was not very long.”

Up next, Pliskova will take on an on-the-rise star when she faces the winner between No.32 seed Maria Sakkari or Sonia Kenin in the third round.

“Kenin I played last year here,” Pliskova recalled. “I know that she’s improved a lot for one year, she was still playing juniors so she’s much better now. And she’s good on hardcourts too. 

“Sakkari I played in Rome - everyone remembers that one. I’ve only played her once, on clay, so I think hardcourts can be different. I feel very good here so no reason to panic.”