Maria storms past Daria

MONTREAL: Maria Sharapova fired 25 winners past hapless Russian compatriot Daria Kasatkina in a 6-0, 6-2 victory at the rain-hit Montreal WTA event on Wednesday, but Angelique Kerber’s first match since capturing the Wimbledon title ended in a sobering defeat.

Sharapova needed just 66 minutes to see off 12th-seeded Kasatkina in an impressive and timely display of big-hitting, with the US Open getting underway in just under three weeks’ time. Kasatkina, 21, managed just three winners in the match. Play was suspended before the start of Wednesday’s night matches because of rain, resulting in four contests being added to Thursday’s schedule. The action will resume at 11:00 am local time (1500 GMT).

World number one Simona Halep will now play Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the second match on court central followed by second seeded Caroline Wozniacki in her second round match against Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus. Venus Williams also had her second match of the tournament moved to Thursday. She beat world number 124 Caroline Dolehide in the first round but will have a tougher test against veteran Sorana Cirstea of Romania.

Sharapova next faces French sixth seed Caroline Garcia for a place in the quarter-finals. Five-time major winner Sharapova leads the head-to-head against Garcia 4-1 but the French player won their only meeting in the last three years on clay in Stuttgart in April.

World number four Kerber, playing for the first time since defeating Serena Williams in last month’s Wimbledon final, slumped to a 6-4, 6-1 loss to Alize Cornet of France. German left-hander Kerber committed 32 unforced errors against the 34th-ranked Cornet in her 85-minute second round exit. Cornet, 28, goes on to face Ashleigh Barty of Australia in the third round.

WTA Montreal results (x denotes seeded player): Women 2nd rd: Maria Sharapova (RUS) bt Daria Kasatkina (RUS x12) 6-0, 6-2

Alize Cornet (FRA) bt Angelique Kerber (GER x4) 6-4, 6-1

Ashleigh Barty (AUS x15) bt Alison Van Uytvanck (BEL) 7-6 (9/7), 6-2

Kiki Bertens (NED) bt Karolina Pliskova (CZE x9) 6-2, 6-2

Elina Svitolina (UKR x5) bt Mihaela Buzarnescu (ROM) 6-3, 6-7 (5/7), 4-3 — retired

Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP) bt Lesia Tsurenko (UKR) 6-4, 3-2 — retired

Anastasija Sevastova (LAT) bt Mónica Puig (PUR) 4-6, 7-6 (11/9), 6-1

Sloane Stephens (USA x3) bt Françoise Abanda (CAN) 6-0, 6-2

Elise Mertens (BEL x14) bt Zhang Shuai (CHN) 6-2, 6-7 (2/7), 6-0.