Victoria Mboko and Gabriel Diallo were both perfect in their opening matches in Miami.
Back where she earned her first-ever WTA Tour victory a year ago, Mboko returned to the Miami Open presented by Itaú in dominant fashion.
The 19-year-old from Burlington had to wait through two rain delays before cruising to a 6-2, 6-0 win over Anna Blinkova in round two on Friday.
The Canadian No. 1 was the clear aggressor in the match, finishing with 32 winners compared to Blinkova’s five. Mboko also dominated on return as she converted on all but one of her seven break points, including a string of four-straight from 2-5 that led her to the win in under an hour.
Mboko was off to a hot start in Miami. The Burlingtonian conceded just a single point in the opening two games, firing five winners as part of her aggressive start, as she went up an early break. However, a few unforced errors led to Blinkova breaking back to cut the deficit to 1-2. Before the world No. 92 could equalize, the rain returned and play was halted.
Mboko put the pressure on right away following the rain delay, holding two break points and converting to regain her advantage, though, it didn’t take long until play was suspended again.
The Canadian fought off a break point on the next point after the second rain delay, eventually managing to hold to increase her lead to 4-1. Mboko then turned 2-5, 30-love, into the set as the 19-year-old battled through the pair of rain delays to wrap up the opener in 35 minutes.
The second set featured clearer skies and smooth sailing for Mboko. The Canuck held Blinkova to just four points in the world No. 92’s first two service games, mounting a comfortable 4-0 advantage.
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At 0-5, 15-30, Mboko pounced on Blinkova’s next two deliveries, powering back-to-back return winners and sealing her place into round three.
The Canadian No. 1 will either meet No. 22 seed Anna Kalinskaya for the second-straight event or world No. 74 Anastasia Zakharova in the round of 32.
Diallo Defeats Wu in Round One
Gabriel Diallo needed just an hour and a half to beat Chinese No. 1 Yibing Wu 6-2, 7-6(3) in the Miami Open presented by Itaú first round on Friday.
The Canadian No. 2’s first-set pressure led to his quick grasp of the opener. His only two break points came in the set, converting on both. On his delivery, Diallo managed to remain perfect but not without any stress as the 24-year-old needed to save seven break points. The world No. 37 was also partially aided by Wu’s 26 unforced errors, six more than Diallo’s total.
Diallo got himself in some trouble early on, committing back-to-back double faults in his opening service game that soon gave Wu two break opportunities at 15-40. The Canadian then used his big serve to get out of the hole, saving both with an ace before eventually holding.
Unforced errors by Wu gave Diallo a comfortable edge in the set. The Chinese recorded six over his next two service games, leading to a double-break advantage for the Montrealer, up 4-1.
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At 5-2, love-30, another strong bit of serving by Diallo turned things around in the game as he fired three unreturned serves on the bounce at 15-30 to clinch the opening set.
Again, double faults came back to haunt Diallo in the second. At 2-3, the Canadian committed two-straight to begin the game before Wu gained triple break point. Unfazed, Diallo’s delivery powered him to five consecutive points to keep the set balanced.
Wu’s serve took a turn for the better as the world No. 118 conceded just four points in his first five service games while hitting three aces. However, the Chinese No. 1 was unable to keep his unforced errors tally down in his return games, leaving a tiebreaker to later settle the set.
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After scoring the first mini-break to lead 3-1, Diallo took a nasty-looking fall, but he was okay. The Canuck was visibly all right as he won the next three rallies, setting him up with match point. At 6-3, Diallo punched his ticket into the second round with his 11th ace of the evening.
The Montrealer’s next opponent is No. 31 seed Ugo Humbert of France, who Diallo faced in ‘s-Hertogenbosch en route to his first ATP title last season.
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There is still one Canadian left in Friday’s order of play as Leylah Annie Fernandez is last on Court 1, taking on Oksana Selekhmeteva. The match could be rescheduled to tomorrow due to the earlier rain delays.
Feature Photo: Martin Sidorjak