Top-seeded Ash Barty dropped a few more points in her second-round match at the Australian Open than her first — but the result was still the same.
Barty followed up her 6-0, 6-0 drubbing of Danka Kovinic in the first round with a much tighter 6-1, 7-6 (7) win over fellow Australian Daria Gavrilova.
After dropping just 10 points against Kovinic, Barty was far less consistent against Gavrilova, racking up 34 unforced errors.
Barty’s serve was a particular problem: she was broken four times, including when serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set.
“When you play another Aussie, the rankings go out the window, experience goes out the window,” she said. “It’s always going to be a tricky match no matter what.”
The 2019 French Open champion had her upper left thigh heavily taped during the match, though she played it down after the match with a laugh. “This isn’t very subtle, is it? I can’t really hide it,” Barty said, adding it was not a big issue. “I’m fit as a fiddle, I’m ready to go.”
Pliskova, Rogers moving on
Earlier, former No. 1 Karolina Pliskova advanced to the third round by beating American Danielle Collins, a semifinalist at Melbourne Park in 2019, 7-5, 6-2.
Pliskova has won 65 matches in Grand Slams but is still seeking her first major title. She was runner-up to Angelique Kerber at the 2016 U.S. Open.
Also, American Shelby Rogers advanced to the third round at the Australian Open for the first time by beating qualifier Olga Danilovic 6-2, 6-3.
Rogers hit seven aces and lost only three points on her first serve.
She came into the tournament with a career record of 1-4 in Melbourne, but at age 28 her fortunes have been on the rise. She reached the quarter-finals at the U.S. Open for the first time last September, and her year-end ranking was a career-best No. 58.