MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Aryna Sabalenka began her Australian Open title defence with a display of power hitting to crush Sloane Stephens ... the evening clash at Rod Laver Arena.

The matches continued as scheduled on the three covered courts, and Sabalenka opened the night session on Rod Laver Arena with a 6-3 6-2 victory over former US Open champion Sloane Stephens.

Aryna Sabalenka will face Sloane Stephens in the opening round of ... Sabalenka and Stephens are set to face off at the Rod Laver Arena on Sunday, January 12, marking their fifth encounter.

It was by no means peak Sabalenka, with the world number one broken twice by the American in a wayward first set at Rod Laver Arena ... winning record to 5-0 over Stephens.

A battling Aryna Sabalenka survived an early wobble to beat Sloane Stephens 6-3 ... own way against the 2017 US Open champion Stephens on Rod Laver Arena. She raced into a 4-0 lead before a ...

Aryna Sabalenka powered past Sloane Stephens to begin her quest for a third consecutive ... romping home 6-3, 6-2 in 71 minutes on Rod Laver Arena. Sabalenka is aiming to become the first woman since ...

The world number one and back-to-back champion in Melbourne defeated Stephens 6-3 6-2 in the first round on Rod Laver Arena. The 26-year-old Belarusian is aiming to become just the seventh player ...

MELBOURNE : Aryna Sabalenka began her Australian Open title defence with a display of power hitting to crush Sloane Stephens ... in the evening clash at Rod Laver Arena. The Belarusian steadied ...