Cincinnati: Ana Ivanovic and Victoria Azarenka fended off tough opposition to reach the second round of the Cincinnati Open.
With Kim Clijsters expected to grab the spotlight later in the day when she makes her much anticipated comeback against France's Marion Bartoli following a two-year hiatus, Ivanovic and Azarenka provided the early action.
Former French Open champion Ivanovic recovered from a woeful start to beat American teenager Melanie Oudin 2-6, 6-1, 6-1, while ninth seed Azarenka saw off Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 6-3, 7-6.
Azarenka, who has won three tournaments this year, was relieved to get back to winning ways after her second-round defeat by Maria Sharapova in Los Angeles last week.
Kanepi pushed her hard in the second set but the Belarussian stepped up an extra gear in the tiebreak, winning it 7-2.
Azarenka has been tipped as a future world number one but the 20-year-old said she did not want to get carried away.
"It's nice that people talk about me maybe being number one at some time but I'm not really focussed on that," she said. "I'm focussed on improving my game and taking it step by step."
Former world number one Ivanovic looked in danger of a shock defeat when 17-year-old Oudin, ranked 68th, ripped though the first set of their match.
Bureau Report
First Published: Tuesday, August 11, 2009, 08:56