Women’s second round play at the Tokyo Olympics tennis tournament began with a rematch between Garbie Muguruza of Spain and Wang Qiang of China. Neither player had previously beaten the other. The match was played on Court.
It took Muguruza just over an hour to defeat the Tianjin native and advance to the second round. Their only two prior clashes occurred in the fall of 2018, both in Asia.
Muguruza Recovers a Break Down to Win the First Set.
After Muguruza’s first love service hold, the remaining four games in this encounter between the Spanish and Chinese players were all played on the server’s end.
With Wang serving at 2-3, Muguruza created the first break chance of the match and ultimately converted to take a 4-2 lead.
But in the next game, the 29-year-old Wang roared back into the match, erasing Muguruza’s lead with a break of her own.
That was the final straw for the Spanish player, who promptly broke serve again to extend her lead and win the set by a score of 6-3.
Muguruza Seals Victory With a Bagel in the Second Set.
Muguruza, who is originally from Venezuela but now resides in Spain, was not eager to wait around for the 27-year-old to steal the show in the second set with a bagel of her own.
Muguruza won the match by breaking serve three times in four opportunities in the deciding game and losing only one point when serving.
With a 5-0 lead in the set and serving for the win, the Spaniard encountered some resistance from Wang, who saved both of the Spanish player’s match points.
Muguruza won the third set and the match by scores of 6-3 and 6-0, completing the match in little over an hour and twenty minutes as opposed to her previous encounter, which lasted over twice as long.
Last Words
In his own words, the 2016 Roland Garros winner elaborated: “Each victory gives you that extra energy and confidence. There are still a few more rounds to go, but today is a good day to be pleased.
In order to avoid exhaustion, it is crucial to save energy. You have to take it one match at a time at an event with this many participants and variables.
