Azarenka romps into second round without dropping a game

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Victoria Azarenka sent a strong message to the rest of the Australian Open field with a 6-0 6-0 hammering of Belgium’s Alison Van Uytvanck in just 53 minutes in the final match of the second day’s play on Tuesday.

The Belarusian produced a powerful masterclass to post the first so-called ‘double bagel’ of the tournament so far and only the 19th in the history of the Australian Open.

The two-times champion has been battling foot injuries and a plummeting ranking for the past two years but entered the year’s opening grand slam showing a compelling return to form with victory in Brisbane, her first tournament win since August 2013.

She picked up where she left off from Brisbane as Van Uytvanck, the world number 43, earned just four points in the first four games and 10 in total during the first set.

It did not get any better for Van Uytvanck, as Azarenka swatted her aside to set up a second-round match against Danka Kovinic of Montenegro.

(Reporting by Greg Stutchbury; Editing by Martyn Herman)