Ana made a bright start in her campaign at the China Open as she convincingly dismantled Kimiko Date-Krumm 6-1, 6-1 in the first round. The 23-year-old produced a highly accomplished performance as she hit 14 winners and just two unforced errors throughout the match.
Ana was immediately in her element at the National Stadium in Beijing, in which she was playing for the first time. She picked up a 4-0 lead as Date-Krumm was inconsistent and struggled with her unforced error count.
Ana broke the Japanese, who did not win a single point on her second serve, to love to wrap up the first set.
Though the rallies became longer in the second set, Ana remained in firm control. She displayed her full arsenal of groundstrokes and entertained the crowd with some wonderful passing winners. The former world No.1 faced a break point in the fifth game, but powerfully cleared them away by hitting three consecutive services winners. She converted her first match point in the seventh game to reach round two.
"That was a fun match," said Ana. "I enjoyed it. I feel like I did everything quite well and I'm looking forward to the next match."
In the second round, Ana will face Svetlana Kuznetsova from Russia. The 16th seed advanced after her opponent Alexandra Dulgheru retired while trailing 6-2, 4-1 on Saturday.
