Day 2 of the Vanda Pharmaceuticals Athens Open brought excitement, turnarounds, and complete domination by the second seed. The top three favorites justified their status on the center court and successfully advanced to the Round of 16.
Tauson Scrapes Through After First-Set Deficit
Although the final score suggests a routine victory, top seed Clara Tauson had to work hard against Japanese qualifier Nao Hibino. Tauson eventually won 2-0 in sets (7-5, 6-4).
The Japanese player put up strong resistance from the start, took the first break, and reached a 5-3 lead in the first set. However, Tauson showed why she is the top seed in crucial moments, winning four consecutive games to take the first set, after which she routinely brought the second set to an end with one extra break.
- The match lasted exactly 1 hour and 55 minutes.
- Tauson dictated the pace with her serve, recording 6 aces, while Hibino hit 2.
- The top seed defended excellently in crisis situations, saving 6 out of 8 break points (75%).
- The total number of points won was 81 for Tauson and 73 for Hibino.
Krejcikova Breaks Tomova’s Early Resistance
The program on the center court was opened by the third seed Barbora Krejcikova and Viktoriya Tomova. Although the Bulgarian underdog struck first and got an early break, the experienced Czech quickly consolidated her ranks and took full control. Krejcikova won 2-0 (6-3, 6-3).
- This duel was completed in 1 hour and 21 minutes.
- Krejcikova hit 3 aces, while her opponent recorded none (0).
- The Czech was extremely aggressive on the return, converting 7 out of 15 offered break points.
- Krejcikova won a total of 69 points in the match, compared to 49 points won by Tomova.
Ann Li’s Perfect Performance
In the last match of the day on the center court, American tennis player Ann Li (second seed) did not leave even a glimmer of hope for Maria Timofeeva. Absolutely everything went the American’s way; she dictated the pace from the first to the last point, which resulted in a convincing 2-0 victory (6-2, 6-1).
- The match lasted only 1 hour and 20 minutes.
- Absolute dominance on serve: Li won 100% of her service games (7 out of 7).
- The American did not allow any surprises, saving all 3 break points she faced during the match (3/3).
- Li ultimately won 67 points, a massive 20 points more than her opponent (47).
Other Day 2 Results
In addition to the matches on the center court, other first-round duels were played across the complex:
- Ito A. was defeated by Korneeva A. with a score of 0-2 (2-6, 1-6).
- Monnet C. overcame Masarova R. after a great battle, 2-1 in sets (4-6, 6-2, 7-6).
- Sakellaridi S. lost to Tona M. with a score of 1-2 (6-7, 7-5, 2-6).
- Blinkova A. was defeated by Sasnovich A. 1-2 (6-3, 2-6, 2-6).
- Valentova T. secured a convincing victory against Costoulas S. 2-0 (6-1, 6-2).
You can find all the results, the main draw, and the complete schedule on our central WTA Athens Open 2026 Hub.
