Karolina Pliskova wasted little time getting her Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open campaign up and running on Tuesday as the former world No 1 cruised into the second round with a straight-sets win over Ysaline Bonaventure.
Pliskova, 30, had been scheduled to face two-time Grand Slam champion Garbine Muguruza in a blockbuster first-round clash but the Spaniard withdrew earlier in the day, citing "personal reasons". The late change in opponent made little difference as Pliskova outclassed the Belgian 6-1, 6-3.
The Czech, currently ranked No 20, dominated Bonaventure in every conceivable department, the lucky loser not able to handle the pace and power of Pliskova's serve or groundstrokes.
Pliskova broke at the first opportunity to lead 3-0 and confirmed her dominance with a second break to ease to a one-set lead. An early night appeared to be on the cards when the two-time major finalist broke at the start of the second set but Bonaventure found some stability on her own service games, holding the next three while still making no in-roads on the Pliskova serve.
The victory, which had felt inevitable from the first game, was eventually completed after just 47 minutes when Pliskova earned a second break. Pliskova's next opponent is expected to provide a sterner test, with Wimbledon champion and recent Australian Open finalist Elena Rybakina standing between her and a place in the quarter-finals.
"I couldn't have asked for a better start today," said Pliskova. "There was a last minute change in the draw as I was meant to play a different player but she withdrew, and this one was a lefty so it wasn't easy. No first round match is easy so I think I did really well today.
"I was prepared for Muguruza, obviously, but as a tennis player you have to be used to this as it can happen. For me, I just focus on my game so it doesn't make much of a difference. I just wanted to serve and play well. I think I played better than I expected."
Former US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez was eliminated in the first round following a defeat to American Shelby Rogers.
Fernandez, who was runner-up to Emma Raducanu at the 2021 US Open, looked to be the player in the ascendancy when she took the second-set tie-break, but the Canadian appeared to lose focus and fell to a 6-4, 6-7, 6-1 loss against world No 46 Rogers.
Rogers will take on Estonian seventh seed Annet Kontaveit in the second round.
In the day's first match on Court 1, Qinwen Zheng showed why she is one of the most exciting young talents on the WTA Tour with an assured 6-3, 6-3 win over Canadian qualifier Rebecca Marino.
Qinwen, 20, earned two breaks of serve in the first set and another in the second to complete a comfortable win and set up an enticing second-round clash with Latvian fifth seed Jelena Ostapenko.
In the first match on the Stadium Court, Beatriz Haddad Maia bounced back from dropping the first set to win eight straight games to complete a 4-6, 6-3, 6-0 win over Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic.
It was a similar story in the following match as Russian eighth seed Liudmila Samsonova fought back to defeat lucky loser Claire Liu 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 after the American stepped in to replace Spain's Paula Badosa, who pulled out due to illness.
Day 3 gets underway with former French Open champion Ostapenko taking on China's Qinwen, followed by Russian fourth seed Veronika Kudermetova, who begins her tournament against Belgium's Elise Mertens.
Second seed Belinda Bencic, who like Kudermetova received a bye into the second round, faces Ukraine's Marta Kostyuk, before Kontaveit and Rogers close out the action. All singles matches on thee third day will be played on the Stadium Court.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
Pari
Produced by: Clean Slate Films (Anushka Sharma, Karnesh Sharma) & KriArj Entertainment
Director: Prosit Roy
Starring: Anushka Sharma, Parambrata Chattopadhyay, Ritabhari Chakraborty, Rajat Kapoor, Mansi Multani
Three stars
In Search of Mary Shelley: The Girl Who Wrote Frankenstein
By Fiona Sampson
Profile
'Avengers: Infinity War'
Dir: The Russo Brothers
Starring: Chris Evans, Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Robert Downey Junior, Scarlett Johansson, Elizabeth Olsen
Four stars
How to become a Boglehead
Bogleheads follow simple investing philosophies to build their wealth and live better lives. Just follow these steps.
• Spend less than you earn and save the rest. You can do this by earning more, or being frugal. Better still, do both.
• Invest early, invest often. It takes time to grow your wealth on the stock market. The sooner you begin, the better.
• Choose the right level of risk. Don't gamble by investing in get-rich-quick schemes or high-risk plays. Don't play it too safe, either, by leaving long-term savings in cash.
• Diversify. Do not keep all your eggs in one basket. Spread your money between different companies, sectors, markets and asset classes such as bonds and property.
• Keep charges low. The biggest drag on investment performance is all the charges you pay to advisers and active fund managers.
• Keep it simple. Complexity is your enemy. You can build a balanced, diversified portfolio with just a handful of ETFs.
• Forget timing the market. Nobody knows where share prices will go next, so don't try to second-guess them.
• Stick with it. Do not sell up in a market crash. Use the opportunity to invest more at the lower price.
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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
All or Nothing
Amazon Prime
Four stars
How Filipinos in the UAE invest
A recent survey of 10,000 Filipino expatriates in the UAE found that 82 per cent have plans to invest, primarily in property. This is significantly higher than the 2014 poll showing only two out of 10 Filipinos planned to invest.
Fifty-five percent said they plan to invest in property, according to the poll conducted by the New Perspective Media Group, organiser of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition. Acquiring a franchised business or starting up a small business was preferred by 25 per cent and 15 per cent said they will invest in mutual funds. The rest said they are keen to invest in insurance (3 per cent) and gold (2 per cent).
Of the 5,500 respondents who preferred property as their primary investment, 54 per cent said they plan to make the purchase within the next year. Manila was the top location, preferred by 53 per cent.
MATCH INFO
Chelsea 1 (Hudson-Odoi 90 1')
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Man of the match: Ilkay Gundogan (Man City)
