Russian Diana Shnaider cruised to a 6–4, 7–5 victory over No. 1 seed Bernarda Pera of the United States in the first round of the Hungarian Grand Prix on Tuesday in Budapest.
Shnaider saved 7 of 11 break points to dispatch Pera, who couldn’t hold leads of 1–0 and 3–1 in the second set. Shnaider did not commit a double fault while tallying four aces.
Russia’s Diana Shnaider reacts during her second round match against Greece’s Maria Sakkari at Australian Open in Melbourne, Australia, on Jan. 18, 2023. (Carl Recine/Reuters)
The No. 2 seed, Shuai Zhang of China, was also eliminated when she retired to Hungarian Amarissa Toth. Ninth-seeded Argentine Nadia Podoroska and Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva, the No. 4 seed, both held off unranked opponents in three sets….