Karolina Muchova clinched her second win in as many weeks against Marketa Vondrousova as the No. 8 seed has been through to the Tokyo round-of-16.
Last week, Muchova won all-Czech battle against Vondrousova in Ningbo after registering a 6-4 6-3 win. Today, they clashed again - this time at the WTA 500 tournament in Tokyo. The 2023 French Open finalist again opened an early lead, taking the first set with a 6-2 scoreline and also collecting the opening game of the second set. Then, the match abruptly ended after the 2023 Wimbledon champion was forced to retire due to injury.
It was the sixth meeting between the two, and their head-to-head now stands at 3-3.
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Muchova: Not the way I wanted to win against Vondrousova
After progressing into the Tokyo round-of-16 via a retirement, the No. 8 seed expressed some empathy for her rival, but also thanked the Japanese crowd who came to watch her first match in the Japanese capital.
"Of course, I'm happy to be in the second round. But it's not the way I wanted to win against a good friend, so I feel for her. It's my first time playing here on this court, so I'm glad there are people who have come to support. And, yeah, I just wish Marketa all the best and to get healthy," the 29-year-old said in her on-court interview.
Next up for Muchova in Tokyo will be rising star Maya Joint, who defeated Viktorija Golubic in three sets. The Czech tennis star and the 32nd-ranked Joint - who won her first WTA title in Eastbourne four months ago - have no previous meetings.
