Caroline Wozniacki beats Alison Van Uytvanck in straight sets in strong start of her Australian Open defence
- Caroline Wozniacki beat Alison Van Uytvanck 6-3, 6-4 in the first round
- The Australian Open champion made a strong start to her defence on Monday
- The Dane, who is seeded third, will next meet Sweden’s Johanna Larsson next
Caroline Wozniacki got the defence of her title up and running with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Alison Van Uytvanck.
The Dane took some time to get into her stride against her Belgian opponent, who had stunned another defending champion, Garbine Muguruza, at Wimbledon last year.
But Wozniacki took the first set before grabbing the crucial break in the third game of the second set to close out the victory.
Caroline Wozniacki got her defence of the Australian Open off to a dream start on Monday
The third seed proved too good for Alison Van Uytvanck as she won in straight sets 6-3, 6-4
Van Uytvanck caused Wozniacki some problems early on before the Dane’s quality told
Wozniacki, who is battling rheumatoid arthritis, sealed the match with a forehand winner on her third matchpoint and will next meet Sweden’s Johanna Larsson.
Larsson progressed after Vera Lapko of Belarus retired while trailing 7-6, 3-0.
Wozniacki opened night play at Rod Laver Arena, where three tournament champions preceded her and all won – Maria Sharapova, Rafael Nadal and Angelique Kerber.
Wozniacki, who is battling rheumatoid arthritis, will face Swede Johanna Larsson next