Sloane Stephens, the 2017 US Open champion who is languishing at No. 73 in world rankings, caused an upset as she defeated No. 10 seed and two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova 6-3, 6-4 in the opening round on Monday.
The American took just 77 minutes to hammer her opponent from the Czech Republic, who won here in 2011 and 2014.
Sloane was beaten in the very first game of the match, but then never lost serve again and broke the left-hander thrice during the course of the match.
Sloane won 78 per cent on her first serve while Petra could win only 66 per cent.
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The 2017 Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza of Spain and Belarusian No. 2 seed Aryna Sabalenka also advanced to the second round.
While Garbine thrashed Fiona Ferro of France, 6-0, 6-1, Aryna beat Romanian qualifier Monica Niculescu 6-1, 6-4.
Garbine, who is a former world No. 1 and is currently the No. 11 seed, dispatched her opponent in just 50 minutes.
The 27-year-old Garbine will next face qualifier Lesley Pattinama Kerkhove.
Lesley, from the Netherlands, shocked two-time Grand Slam champion Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-3, 6-3 for her first win in the main draw of a Grand Slam. This was only her third appearance in the main draw of a major.
