TOKYO (AP) — Former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin has extended her perfect record against Wang Xinyu, beating the 10th-seeded Chinese player 6-1, 6-4 in a first-round match at the Pan Pacific Open on Tuesday.
The 25-year-old American, who won the Australian Open in 2020 and was a French Open finalist the same year, won her fourth straight match over Wang. Her previous victories over Wang were twice at Wimbledon — in 2021 and 2023 — and at Auckland, New Zealand last year.
Kenin beat Garbiñe Muguruza in the Melbourne Park Grand Slam singles final in 2020 and lost to Iga Swiatek in the French Open final a few months later.
After her Australian Open win, she achieved her highest ranking of No. 4, but a series of injuries over the past several years has seen her ranking slip to her current No. 155. She also had to withdraw from the 2021 U.S. Open due to COVID-19.
Kenin was joined in the second round by Canadians Bianca Andreescu, who beat Serena Williams for the U.S. Open title in 2019, and Leylah Fernandez, who won their opening matches Monday.
The top-seeded player in the Pan Pacific this year is Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen,
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