Barbora Krejčíková defeated Maria Sakkari 7-6, 6-3 to reach the next round in Athens. The win was built on her perfect record on break points – converting all three she faced – despite Sakkari firing five aces in the first set.
The first set saw a single exchange of breaks: Sakkari broke for a 3-1 lead in the fourth game, but Krejčíková immediately broke back in the seventh game to level at 4-4 before edging the tiebreak. The second set followed a similar pattern: Sakkari broke first at 1-2, but Krejčíková replied in the very next game and then broke again at 5-3 to close out the match.
Krejčíková’s ability to cash in on all break opportunities proved critical – she converted 3 of 3, while Sakkari failed to save any of her three break points faced. The Czech also served at an outstanding 89% first-serve rate and won 66% of those points.