CLEAN-KILL! Victoria Azarenka Eases Past Zhang Shuai in Round of 64 of Chicago Fall Tennis Classic 2021

After making a splashing comeback to the WTA tour last year by winning the Cincinnati Masters, former World No.1 and two-time major champion Victoria Azarenka produced consistent performances this year as well.

Even though she hasn’t won a singles tournament yet, the Belarusian managed to win the doubles event at the Grass Court Championships in Berlin alongside compatriot Aryna Sabalenka.

Victoria Azarenka has had a mixed-season so far on the WTA tour

Apart from the title, there were some tough losses for Azarenka against top-tier players like Ashleigh Barty, Garbine Muguruza, and Sabalenka. At the recently concluded US Open, the Belarusian lost in the third round against Muguruza. Currently ranked no.34 on the WTA tour, Azarenka is looking to finish the season on a high and move up a few places ahead of next year.

The former World No.1 chose to play in the Chicago Fall Tennis Classic, a WTA 250 tournament, where she faced Shuai Zhang in the first-round.

The duo faced each other twice on tour ahead of this clash and Azarenka managed to beat the Chinese player in both the encounters. Let’s see how the match progressed.

Watch this story: Alexander Zverev, John McEnroe, and Other Top Tennis Stars Fun Moments at Laver Cup 2021

Azarenka marches past Shuai Zhang in the first round of Chicago Fall Tennis Classic

Right from the start, Azarenka began to take charge of points and found angles to hit winners from both the wings. Even though Zhang managed to extract a break from Azarenka’s serve, the latter broke the Chinese thrice in the first set alone and won it, 6-2.

Also, Zhang made numerous unforced errors in comparison to Azarenka and couldn’t do the required damage from her first serve. Even the second set followed the same pattern as the first.

It was Zhang who got the early break but the Belarusian dominated the rest of the games and didn’t allow her opponent to win another game. As the unforced errors kept piling up from the Chinese professional, Azarenka kept leaping forward on her service games with ease.

It was only a matter of time before the former world no.1 clinched a straight sets victory as she won the match quite comfortably without facing any real pressure from Shuai Zhang.

Also read: “That was a strong message”: Victoria Azarenka Opens Up on Her Career and Motherhood