Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova has reached the Toray Pan Pacific Open quarter-finals thanks to a straight-sets win against Kiki Bertens. The 28-year-old is no stranger to second seed, Bertens, as the pair have faced each other five times in the past 12 months.
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And, with the head-to-head score level at 2-2 going into their tie in Osaka, Japan, it was Pavlyuchenkova who edged ahead as she wrapped up a 6-1 7-5 win in one hour and 31 minutes. The Russian, who also defeated Bertens at the Australian Open and in Wuhan, can now look forward to her first quarter-final appearance at the tournament since losing the 2017 final against Caroline Wozniacki.
“It was nice to play such a good player today,” she told the WTA website. “We played at the US Open and she won. But I got revenge today here and I’m pleased. “The difference today compared to the US Open was I took my chances. I had opportunities in New York, 5-2 up and serving for the set, but I didn’t take them. Today I did and I was sharp on all the points.”
