Sabalenka dancing to her own beat en route to third round

Second seed denies Japanese qualifier for ninth straight Grand Slam match

Aryna Sabalenka / Deuxième tour, Roland-Garros 2024©Philippe Montigny / FFT
 - Dan Imhoff

Aryna Sabalenka is setting a post-match precedent with every victory in Paris.

On Thursday, the second seed again found her groove for a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Japanese qualifier Moyuka Uchijima in the second round at Roland-Garros, which prompted a post-match dance routine down the stairs off Court Philippe-Chatrier.

It is a celebration that has become synonymous with the 26-year-old following her opening two rounds and after the 62-minute result on Thursday, she gave every reason to believe it would continue well into this fortnight.

Story of the match

The 83rd-ranked Uchijima came into the encounter riding a 19-match winning streak after picking up six ITF titles on hard courts and clay in the past six months.

She had not dropped a set through three rounds of qualifying to book her Roland-Garros debut and conceded just two games in the opening round against fellow qualifier Irene Burillo Escorihuela.

Under the closed roof of the sprawling Court Philippe-Chatrier, however, this was a sizeable step up in occasion and opponent.

The 22-year-old had never faced a top 30 player or beaten anyone in the top 40 so the Australian Open champion, a recent runner-up in Madrid and Rome, presented a daunting prospect.

If Sabalenka hoped for a nervous start from her opponent she was disappointed.

Uchijima was far from overawed early on and held her ground through the opening five games from the baseline.

In the most fiercely contested game of the set, Sabalenka’s big-match experience began to show. The second seed now had a read on her unheralded foe and bludgeoned a second serve return for a 4-2 break. The set was hers two games later.

The radar was now finely tuned and there was even breathing space for a rare serve-volley foray on her way to 3-1 in the second set before she carried the advantage to the finish line in 62 minutes for a clash against good friend and former world No.2 Paula Badosa.

Aryna Sabalenka, second round, Roland-Garros 2024©️Philippe Montigny / FFT

Key stats

Sabalenka has now claimed 12 of her past 14 matches on clay, with Iga Swiatek her only conqueror.

Her serve was particularly damaging throughout on Thursday. She claimed 22 of 29 points on her first delivery (76 per cent) and 13 of 18 (72 per cent) on her second serve. She fended off all four break points.

There was nowhere to hide for Uchijima once the second seed was locked and loaded.

Sabalenka clobbered 25 forehand winners – more than twice her opponent’s winner count off both wings – and finished off 11 of 14 points at net.

Sabalenka’s assessment

On winning two rounds after two losing finals: “The final in Rome was really emotional. It was tough match. [Iga] played incredible tennis. Going here I was still a little bit emotional about those two finals, but it's another tournament, and we start everything from the beginning. I knew that those matches would not affect my game here. Yeah, just happy with these two great-level matches.”

On confidence gained after defending a Grand Slam title: “I don't like to talk about confidence. I definitely have so much more belief in myself that I can do well in the Grand Slams and I can be consistent with my results. I would say I definitely have more belief than I had last year.”