US Open favourite Muguruza cruises through first match

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New York, August 29: Garbine Muguruza made a confident start to her bid for a second successive grand slam, cruising to a 6-0 6-3 victory over Varvara Lepchenko in her first match at the US Open.

The Wimbledon champion, who also won the Western & Southern Open this month, is many people's favourite for the women's singles title and one of eight players who can secure the world number one ranking at Flushing Meadows.

Muguruza does have a poor record in New York, though, failing to make the third round in four previous visits. Yet she looks primed to go much further this time around and enjoyed a comfortable outing on Monday.

World number 64 Lepchenko, who reached the fourth round of the US Open two years ago, began the contest abysmally and her subsequent improvement was not enough to seriously trouble the third seed.

Muguruza won every game in a 21-minute first set without needing to display anything like her best form, the Spaniard recording a bagel with the aid of just three winners as her opponent erred time and time again.

There was a belated upturn from Lepchenko thereafter and the underdog responded to falling 4-2 down in set two by immediately breaking back.

However, Muguruza swiftly won the next two games to bring proceedings to an end. She will face either Wimbledon junior champion Claire Liu or Duan Yingying in round two.

STATISTICAL BREAKDOWN Muguruza [3] beat Lepchenko 6-0 6-3

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS Muguruza - 16/11 Lepchenko - 8/22

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS Muguruza - 0/1 Lepchenko - 0/0

BREAK POINTS WON Muguruza - 5/6 Lepchenko - 1/2

FIRST SERVE PERCENTAGE Muguruza - 60 Lepchenko - 81

PERCENTAGE OF POINTS WON ON FIRST/SECOND SERVE Muguruza - 83/63 Lepchenko - 38/50

TOTAL POINTS Muguruza - 55 Lepchenko - 27

Source: OPTA