NEW YORK -- Caroline Wozniacki enjoyed a victorious return to New York, easing past qualifier Tatiana Prozorova 6-3, 6-2 in the first round of the US Open. A two-time US Open finalist, the victory is Wozniacki's first in four years at the tournament.

The US Open is Wozniacki's third tournament since coming out of retirement. She made her competitive return in Montreal and Cincinnati. She is now 39-13 at the US Open, her most wins at any Slam.

Ranked No.227, Prozorova made her Grand Slam debut after a successful qualifying campaign, which included a 3-hour and 29-minute effort in the final round to bet Tamara Zidansek. Prozorova struggled to match Wozniacki's trademark consistency, firing 41 unforced errors in the 91-minute match. Wozniacki broke serve six times and stayed steady, hitting 10 winners to 21 unforced errors.

The victory sets up a nostalgic second-round meeting with two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova. Seeded 11th, the Czech defeated Spain's Cristina Bucsa 6-1, 7-6(5) in the first round. 

"Just happy to be through the first round, get that out of the way," Wozniacki said. "Obviously it only gets tougher from here. I'm playing Petra next, someone I know very well and have played many, many times. I kind of know what to expect.

"I got to play better next match to beat her, but so does she. So I think it's going to be an exciting one."

"We've been around for a long time. We've played each other many times. I think at the end of the day we're just out there to do our best and compete."

- Caroline Wozniacki

Wednesday's second-round clash will be the 15th meeting between Kvitova and Wozniacki. Kvitova holds a narrow edge in their head-to-head, winning 8 of their 14 matches. It will be their first match since the 2018 WTA Finals, where Wozniacki won 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 en route to the title. 

"I know where my game needs to be at to beat Petra," Wozniacki said. "There's definitely a calmness to knowing that. At the same time I'm playing someone who obviously plays very well.

"It could be anything out there in the next match, but I hope it's going to be a great match. That's why I'm here. I want to compete. I want to play against the best players."