Muguruza on Blockbuster: Too Early, Too Bad

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Muguruza on Blockbuster: Too Early, Too Bad

Garbiñe Muguruza played her best clay match of the season powering into the Roland Garros third round.

The 2016 champion will need to play even better to sustain her Roland Garros run.

More: Halep Shows Grit, Faces Questions

The 19th-seeded Spaniard played sharp combinations sweeping Johanna Larsson 6-4, 6-1 in 64 minutes to charge into the Roland Garros third round for the sixth consecutive year.

Muguruza's streak of five straight appearances in the French Open second week will be put to the test when she meets Elina Svitolina in round three. The two-time Grand Slam champion summed up the blockbuster clash simply: "too early, too bad."

"Maybe it's a bit too early, but too bad," Muguruza said. "It will be very interesting match to play. I think it's an excellent and interesting third round. Last time we played was in Dubai. It was sometime ago. We played excellent matches, long rallies, and very different matches. It's going to be interesting."

The ninth-seeded Svitolina crushed Muguruza, 6-1, 6-2, on the hard court of Dubai earlier this season and figures to be fresh for the rematch. Svitolina reached the third round without striking a shot as compatriot Kateryna Kozlova withdrew with a viral illness.

The precise counter-puncher has drained errors from the flat-hitting Muguruza in their past meetings.

The former No. 1 showed more patient point-construction today and will need to play a clean match against two-tme quarterfinalist Svitolina, who lost in the 2018 Roland Garros third round.

"I tried to build points a bit more instead of hitting very hard and trying to get a winner," Muguruza said. "And then I had to adapt my game to the clay, because you have to adapt. You have to build your points a bit more. I also used more topspin, and I tried to be more patient."

Photo credit: adidas

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