NEW YORK, August 31, 2018

Maria Sharapova has improved to 21-0 at night in Flushing Meadows, defeating Sorana Cirstea of Romania 6-2, 7-5 on Thursday.

The No. 22 seed from Russia sent down five aces, winning 64 per cent of her first service points to advance in one hour and 50 minutes.

Next up will be an US Open third round clash with Jelena Ostapenko. Five-time major winner Sharapova won the only previous meeting with the 2017 French Open champion at the BNL Internazionali in Rome earlier this season in three sets.

“It was a real battle [in Rome]. It could have gone either way,” Sharapova was quoted on the US Open official website. “It was a really long, physical match. It was our first ever meeting. It was a chance to see and feel each other’s game.

“I was really impressed by her game. She’s young and fearless, comes out swinging. She’s a Grand Slam champion, so that speaks for itself. She’s got that experience in Grand Slams already. I think she likes the matchup of playing against me. Both quite aggressive players. But I do, as well.”