Aryna Sabalenka had to fend off a resurgent Anna Blinkova in the second set as she progressed at the Madrid Open.

Sabalenka, runner-up to Iga Swiatek last year, prevailed 6-3 6-4 in her opening match on Friday.

The world number one showcased the variety of weapons in her armoury throughout the encounter, though Blinkova did push her in the second set.

Indeed, Sabalenka was facing a break point at 30-40 down in the 10th game, yet she recovered by reeling off three successive points to clinch victory.

A failed return from Blinkova was followed up by a cross-court winner from Sabalenka, who then struck a brilliant ace as her opponent took a wild swing and a miss.

Sabalenka will be joined in the next round by fellow seed Jasmine Paolini, who laid on a masterclass against Katie Boulter.

Paolini triumphed 6-1 6-2 in a contest that lasted just 60 minutes.

9/9 - Aryna Sabalenka is the ninth player to feature at the Madrid Open as World No. 1 - they all won at their tournament's debut in the history of the event. Role.#MMOPEN | @MutuaMadridOpen @WTA @WTA_insider pic.twitter.com/GlXz4BWRZw

— OptaAce (@OptaAce) April 25, 2025

Data Debrief: Nine for nine

Sabalenka became the ninth woman to feature at the Madrid Open as world number one.

And she kept up a 100% record for those top-ranked players at the tournament, when it comes to the world number one winning their first match at the event.

Paolini, meanwhile, has now defeated Boulter on all three surfaces.

It makes Boulter just the second opponent that Paolini has defeated on hard, grass and clay courts on the WTA Tour, along with Bianca Andreescu.