Kvitova eases into round of 16; Siniakova upsets Muguruza in Montreal

No.7 seed Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic blasted into the round of 16 at the Omnium Banque Nationale on Tuesday, defeating Fiona Ferro of France, 6-4, 6-4, in their first meeting.

Kvitova, the 2012 Omnium Banque Nationale champion, got her campaign in Montreal off to a flying start with her victory over 84th-ranked Ferro. Two-time Wimbledon champion Kvitova is seeking her 20th hardcourt WTA singles title, with her most recent coming earlier this year in Doha.

World No.12 Kvitova used her powerful left-handed game to fire eight aces and smother returns, claiming over half the points off of Ferro's second service in the 89-minute clash.

"Both sets were very tight, actually," Kvitova said on court, after her win. "In the first set, I was up all the time, but in the second set I was trying to come back from a break down. I made it in the end, but it was really tough. 

"The conditions were very windy, it was still turning around so it wasn’t just one way when the wind went. The serve helped me a lot, and that was the key today."

Kvitova got off to the early lead by breaking for 3-2 and easing to double set point on the Ferro serve at 5-3. Ferro fended off those attempts to hold on for 5-4, and the Frenchwoman pushed Kvitova to deuce in the next game. However, Kvitova converted her fourth set point by forcing a short return with another strong delivery.

After not facing a break point in the first set, Kvitova was immediately tested in the second set by Ferro. The French player slammed a backhand passing winner to break in the second game of the set, as she built a 3-0 lead.

But Kvitova used imposing returns to clinch a love break and pull back on serve at 3-2. Former World No.2 Kvitova repeated that very same feat at 4-4, earning a critical break to serve for the match. On her second match point at 5-4, another fiery Kvitova serve was returned long by Ferro, and the Czech booked her spot in the third round.

It was a great afternoon for Czechs on Centre Court, where Katerina Siniakova earlier posted a career-best result at the Omnium Banque Nationale. Siniakova reached the third round of the event for the first time by knocking out No.5 seed Garbiñe Muguruza of Spain, 6-2, 0-6, 6-3.

World No.55 Siniakova, who defeated former Roland Garros champion Jelena Ostapenko in the opening round, ousted a second Grand Slam champion in a row with her victory over two-time major winner and former World No.1 Muguruza.

For 25-year-old Siniakova, the win over 9th-ranked Muguruza is her second triumph over a Top 10 player this season, adding to her victory over then-World No.8 Serena Williams at Parma. Siniakova now has seven Top 10 wins overall throughout her career.

Siniakova, who won the Olympic gold medal in women's doubles with Barbora Krejcikova, notched the upset in a hair under two hours, despite dropping a bagel second set. Siniakova converted seven of her 11 break points to eke out the three-set victory and move into the round of 16.

After falling behind 2-0, Siniakova used deft volleys and strong serves to reel off six straight games and clinch the opening set. Not to be outdone, Muguruza went on a game-winning streak of her own, claiming the next six games to blank Siniakova in a commanding second set.

The deciding set opened with four straight breaks of serve before Muguruza held on for a 3-2 lead. But Siniakova turned the tables from there, drawing an error from the Muguruza forehand to break for a 4-3 advantage. Siniakova stormed through the latter stages of the match, winning 16 of the last 18 points, and sealing match point with a rally backhand winner crosscourt.

Another Olympic gold medalist was a winner on Tuesday, as No.10 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia defeated French qualifier Caroline Garcia of France, 6-4, 6-4, in their opening-round affair.

Pavlyuchenkova, who won the mixed doubles Olympic gold medal alongside Top 10 ATP player Andrey Rublev, continues a solid summer which has also seen her reach her first Grand Slam singles final at Roland Garros.

The Russian took an hour-and-a-half to fend off former World No.4 Garcia, converting four of her nine break points to pick up the win and set up a second-round meeting with fellow power hitter Jessica Pegula of the United States.

But big-serving Russian Liudmila Samsonova upset Olympics semifinalist and No.12 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, in two hours and eight minutes.

Samsonova stormed to prominence during the grass season this year, when she blasted her way to a maiden title in Berlin and reached the round of 16 at Wimbledon as a wildcard.

Rybakina nearly matched Samsonova in service prowess during this encounter, but Samsonova ultimately triumphed by winning 84 percent of her first-service points, compared to Rybakina's slightly lower 76 percent success rate.

Samsonova had three service breaks, one more than Rybakina, to eke out the first-round upset in her Omnium Banque Nationale main-draw debut.