American Shelby Rogers continued her impressive start to the season, powering past Spaniard Lara Arruabarrena to reach the Hobart International quarterfinals. The world No.57 only need 66 minutes to record a 6-2 6-2 second round win in the feature match of tonight’s evening session.
Rogers took control of the match early, dictating play with her heavy ground stokes and dominating on serve. She lost only eight service points, sealing the first set in 29 minutes with her third ace.
“It’s nice to get some free points here and there, especially in some tricky wind,” Rogers said of her serving performance.
The second set followed the same trend, with Rogers streaking ahead 4-1. Arruabarrena managed to get one break back, finally making an inroads on her opponent’s serve. But Rogers responded by winning the next two games to seal a comprehensive victory.
.@Shelby_Rogers_ powers into the quarterfinals, defeating #Arruabarrena 6-2 6-2 #HobartTennis #TassieStyle pic.twitter.com/aTVbiaomFH
— Hobart International (@HobartTennis) January 11, 2017
“I’ve had a couple of days off here, so it was nice to come out and still be sharp with my game and feeling fresh,” Rogers said of her win.
“I was very happy with the way I played, the way I moved and closed out that second set, it could have gotten a little tough there.”
Rogers now plays Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko, a player she hasn’t beaten in two previous matches.
“She’s an incredible player,” Rogers said of the world No.61. “She had a great year last year and she’s definitely continued that at the start of this tournament. It’s going to be tough.”