US Open winner Flavia Pennetta has secured her place in the second round of the China Open courtesy of a victory in three sets over wildcard entry Xinyun Han.
The first set proved to be an even contest as both players struggled to hold their serve as it looked to be heading towards a tie-breaker. However, the Italian secured her third break of the set to take the first 7-5.
However, Han battled back in the second as she and Pennetta continued to have problems on their service games. The women exchanged four breaks before the Chinese found the crucial third break of the 33-year-old to level the match by taking the set 6-4.
The Italian managed to regain her composure in the decider, although Han maintained her attacking display as the third followed the same pattern as the previous two sets. Pennetta displayed her quality at the vital moment to earn the break to allow her to clinch the match by a 7-5 4-6 6-4 scoreline.
Pennetta will play Brazil's Teliana Pereira in the second round of the competition.
Simon Sinclair
