Aryna Sabalenka advanced to the third round of the Italian Open after claiming a dominant 6-2 6-3 victory over world No 53, Barbora Krejcikova.
Her victory comes after the world No 1 called on players to boycott the Grand Slams if tournament bosses do not give players a bigger share of prize pot revenues.
She received the backing from Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner earlier on Thursday, with the latter claiming the majors should give players greater respect.
Krejcikova, a former world No 2, was making her long-awaited return, having been absent from the WTA Tour since February due to an injury to her left thigh.
Barbora Krejcikova of Czechia, returns the ball to Aryna Sabalenka
But Sabalenka came out of the blocks flying, hitting 26 winners to wrap up the encounter in one hour and 24 minutes.
“I’m super happy to be through,” Sabalenka said, before paying a nod to her opponent.
“She’s a great player. We’ve had a lot of tough matches in the past.
“She’s such a fighter. Happy to see her back. I’m happy with the level I played and to get this win.”
It wasn’t all plain sailing for the world No 1, who had to fight back after Krejcikova broke her in the first game of the opening set.
She hit back with a break of her own and followed that up with a second to take a commanding 4-2 lead in the set. Sabalenka took control from there, utilising some powerful ground strokes to claim back-to-back breaks and go 1-0 in the match.
From there, she kept her foot on the gas pedal into the second set, taking a 4-1 lead, before saving a break point at 5-2 to see out the match.
The victory means Sabalenka will advance to play world No 27, Sorana Cirstea, who beat Tatjana Maria 6-2 6-0 earlier on Thursday.
The world No 1 has never won the Italian Open, notably losing out to Iga Swiatek in the final in 2025.
Elsewhere, Coco Gauff advanced to the next round following a 6-3 6-4 victory over 19-year-old Tereza Valentova, while Qinwen Zheng fought hard to defeat Spain’s Cristina Bucsa, 7-6(8-6) 6-2.
Sabalenka shares inspiring message after Laureus Award victory
Aryna Sabalenka with the Laureus Award Trophy
During her post-match interview, Sabalenka also lifted the lid on what it was like to be named Sportswoman of the Year at the Laureus Awards in April.
Sabalenka shared an inspiring message for any young girls looking to follow in her footsteps.
“It’s an achievement and I’m super proud of that,” Sabalenka said. “There are so many great women and athletes – women doing great stuff.
“To win this award means a lot to me. This young girl, she was hungry, she was a fighter, she was passionate about this sport.
“She was a hard worker and honestly, [to any young girls] I would tell them to keep going, and if you’re going to keep pushing yourself, you are going to get to the very top.
“I’m super proud of myself and am super honoured.”
Fearnley and Tsitsipas crash out in Rome
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Highlights of the Madrid Open match between Stefanos Tsitsipas and Daniel Merida.
After booking his place in the main draw in Rome through qualifying, Britain’s Jacob Fearnley bowed out in the first round after suffering a 6-7 (6-8) 6-4 2-6 defeat to world No 58, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
The 24-year-old served out 13 double faults, but fought hard, forcing the French No 7 to a tie-break in the opening set, before bouncing back to claim the second.
Ultimately, it was Mpetshi Perricard’s power that saw him edge out the victory, with the 22-year-old claiming back-to-back breaks to win the final set.
Later in the afternoon, Stefanos Tsitsipas was also knocked out of the tournament by Tomas Machac, suffering a 4-6 6-7(4-7) defeat.
Despite reaching the round of 16 at the ATP1000 in Madrid last week, where he was knocked out by Casper Ruud, Thursday’s defeat signals the former world No 3, Tsitsipas, is still struggling with his game, having slumped to No 75 on the ATP Tour rankings.
Watch the Italian Open in Rome until Sunday, May 17, live on Sky Sports or stream with NOW and the Sky Sports app.
