WTA US Open 2011 Preview: Victoria Azarenka vs. Gisela Dulko

Victoria Azarenka is set for a challenging second round showdown against Gisela Dulko on Thursday at the U.S Open.

Victoria Azarenka was dominant against Johanna Larsson in the first round of the U.S Open, and it looks like she could be set for a lengthy run in this year’s competition. The Belarusian has had the misfortune to have lost to an eventual finalist in every slam this season, so she’ll be aiming to pick up momentum so that this doesn’t happen again in time for a potential third round clash against Serena Williams.

Azarenka’s next matchup will be against Gisela Dulko of Argentina. Dulko efficiently swept aside the threat of Rebecca Marino in round one, seeing out her match against the Canadian in just under an hour. Dulko’s first serve percentage was below fifty percent, but it should be taken into account that Dulko won an incredible 91 percent of the points played when she got her initial serve in.

Azarenka will be considered the favourite on Thursday, despite having lost her last three matches against Dulko. Dulko had been beating the world No. 5 in the second round of last year’s U.S Open (5-1), before Azarenka was forced to retire. It seems like this contest should be well worth keeping an eye on.