Victoria Mboko’s start to the Asian swing has not yet gone according to her expectations as the Canadian No. 1 lost 6-3, 6-2 in the Wuhan Open first round to world No. 11 Ekaterina Alexandrova on Monday.
Mboko has lost three-straight WTA matches for the first time in her career, losing in her opening match in Beijing and at the US Open.
The Torontonian struggled on her delivery, winning just 53 per cent of her first-serve points and 54 on her second. The 19-year-old was also broken four times on the eight break points she faced on the day.
Mboko was broken in her opening two service games of the match as part of Alexandrova taking a commanding 5-0 lead of the first set.
The Canadian mounted a slight comeback, breaking the No. 9 seed in the seventh game before holding to cut the deficit to 3-5. However, Alexandrova served out the set on the second attempt to seal the opener.
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In the second set at 1-1, 30-40, Alexandrova put away a forehand winner at the net to take an early advantage of the set. Mboko had a chance to break back but let a break point slip as she eventually trailed 1-3.
The NBO champion suffered back-to-back breaks to go down 1-4 before an Alexandrova hold put her one game away from a spot in the second round. At 5-2, 40-love, the No. 9 seed painted the centre service line with her second ace of the day to wrap up the match in a little over 80 minutes.
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Mboko remains in Wuhan for the doubles draw as she teams with Australian Maya Joint. Leylah Annie Fernandez is now the lone Canadian in singles. The Lavalloise begins play later Monday against NBO finalist Naomi Osaka.
Feature Photo: Martin Sidorjak
