Aryna Sabalenka wasted little time in getting her Italian Open campaign up and running as she sealed a straight-sets victory over Barbora Krejcikova. 

Sabalenka, a beaten finalist in the 2024 edition to Iga Swiatek, needed just one hour and 24 minutes to advance to the third round with a 6-2 6-3 win on Thursday. 

But it was Krejcikova who opened the match brighter as she broke Sabalenka in the first game, only for the top seed to return the favour immediately. 

That early wobble seemed to be the wake-up call that Sabalenka needed, as she reeled off the final four games with the minimum of fuss to edge closer to the next round. 

After missing the chance to get the better of Krejcikova's serve in the second game, Sabalenka did not repeat the trick in the fourth game as she quickly raced into a 4-1 lead. 

Krejcikova bravely fought on, but she could only delay the inevitable as Sabalenka confirmed a date with Sorana Cirstea with a blistering serve that her opponent returned wide.

Strong start for Sabalenka @SabalenkaA kicks off her Rome campaign with a straight set win over Krejcikova 6-2, 6-3! #IBI26 pic.twitter.com/uAIxtirYsR

— wta (@WTA) May 7, 2026

Data Debrief: Sabalenka responds to Madrid misery

In her first match since relinquishing her Madrid Open title following a shock quarter-final exit to Hailey Baptiste, Sabalenka was back to her blistering best here.

Sabalenka (74.8%, 151-51) has now surpassed Ashleigh Barty (74.7%) for the fourth-highest win rate at WTA-1000 events since the format's introduction in 2009 among players who have played a minimum of 20 matches.

In addition, only Bianca Andreescu (69.2%) and Swiatek (62.3%) have a higher win rate against grand slam champions at WTA level than Sabalenka (62.2%, 61-37) among active players (minimum 20 matches).