Tennis August 10, 2012
Samantha Stosur has opened her American hardcourt campaign with a much-needed victory at the WTA event in Montreal.
After a first-round bye, Australia's reigning US Open champion was leading Simona Halep 7-5, 4-4 when the Romanian retired injured.
The win was only Stosur's second since reaching the French Open semi-finals in June on clay.
The world No.5 endured a disappointing grasscourt season with a second-round exit at Wimbledon and first-round loss at the London Olympics.
Fourth-seeded Stosur next faces Czech Lucie Safarova for a place in the quarter-finals as she tries to rebuild her form and confidence before beginning her US Open title defence in two weeks.
In other second-round matches yesterday, fifth-seeded Czech Petra Kvitova rallied to beat Kazakhstan's Ksenia Pervak 4-6, 7-6 (7-0), 6-0.
Italian eighth seed Sara Errani cruised past Slovakia's Jana Cepelova 6-3, 6-2 and fellow Italian Flavia Pennetta advanced when South African Chanelle Scheepers retired with an injury.
World No.2 Maria Sharapova withdrew from the event citing a viral infection. The Russian Olympic silver medallist joins US gold medal winner Serena Williams in missing the event. ''I'm sorry not to be able to play,'' Sharapova said. ''I have a bad viral infection which I must have picked up after London.'' AA-AFP