Jennifer Brady recorded an emphatic win in her first WTA match since August 2021 at the Citi Open, easing past Ukraine's world number 28, Anhelina Kalinina 6-2, 6-1 in just over an hour.
Brady endured an injury-ravaged two years that derailed her projected rise to the world's Top 10 in the WTA Rankings, and watched in agony and horror at the prospect of losing the best years of her tennis life. But on the evidence of Tuesday's fabulous performance, maybe the best years are patently ahead of her.
The 28-year-old last tasted a win at Tour-level 714 days ago when she defeated Ekaterina Alexandrova in Cincinnati. And here she is, back in the winner's column in DC, as she showcased an incredible level of power tennis and superb movement in her opening match.
Not many players have the stamina and endurance to out rally Kalinina who has emerged as one of the most astute baseliners in the last 18 months. But Brady's bazooka forehand dictated this match from the get-go. Right in the opening point, a Brady forehand missile almost took Kalinina out of the TV picture.
That set the tone for what was to come. The two players quickly exchanged breaks at the start of the first set, but Brady was the one who cranked up the temperature, with her famous one-two punch of a wide serve and forehand combo.
She nudged ahead 3-2 with another break, after a stunning return of the T-serve, and followed it with a sumptuous backhand down the line winner. Moments later Kalinina was broken again courtesy of a double fault on break point as her serve completely malfunctioned in the wake of Brady's unrelenting power.
Shortly after Brady bagged the first set 6-2, there was a real sense of inevitability about the result. Kalinina held just once in the second set, which was completely one-way traffic and which lasted 28 minutes. And it was only fitting that Brady's winning shot was the cracking sound of her forehand that flashed past a watching Kalinina.
Brady is playing with a protected ranking this week, and has confirmed she has not received any wild card at the tuneup tournaments before the US Open. The former Australian Open finalist is safely through to the second round where she will face the winner of the match between Qinwen Zheng and fellow American Madison Keys.
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