Stosur makes favorable debut at 2015 Family Circle Cup

Photo by Daniel Ward

Andrea Petkovic, Jelena Jankovic and (especially) Angelique Kerber all struggled through three sets in their Charleston opening rounds today, but 2010 champion Samantha Stosur quietly and efficiently advanced to the second round with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Sesil Karatantcheva. The Australian star was relaxed and prepared, and looked fresh and crisp in soft yellow and white.

Karatantcheva did the right thing: She repeatedly directed balls at Stosur's backhand, only Stosur's  backhand, in this case, was working extremely well. The Stosur serve was on, too. The 9th seed recorded first and second serve win percentages of 68 and 65.

In the next round, Stosur will face Lara Arrubuabarrena. If she wins that match, she'll wind up in what could be an exciting contest against 5th seed Kerber, who will need all of her considerable defensive skills if Stosur turns the pressure on.