Maria Sakkari eased past Germany’s Tatjana Maria in straight sets (6-3, 6-2) on her debut at the US Open. Her victory against the 37-year-old German breaks a 3-year drought at the US Open that saw Greece’s top female tennis player crash out of the tournament in the first round.

The Greek, 30, ranked 64th in the world, is trying to recapture her previous form, which propelled her to 3rd in the ATP world rankings in 2022. This was Sakkari’s 3rd win against her opponent, who is currently ranked 42nd in the world.

The Greek player suffered a service break in the first set but responded with a double break against the German, eventually wrapping up the set 6-3.

In the second set, Sakkari secured a double-break cushion and ran away with the set. In the second round, Sakkari will face Hungary’s Bondar, who shocked 12th-ranked Svitolina, beating the Ukrainian 2-0 (6-2, 6-4).