Halep through, Ivanovic knocked out

Cape Town - Simona Halep eased past Kirsten Flipkens while Ana Ivanovic was knocked out in the opening round of the US Open on Tuesday.

The Romanian was in a dominant mood on the hard courts of Flushing Meadows, racing to a 6-0, 6-2 win in just 60 minutes.

The fifth seed won the opening 11 games of the contest before Flipkens managed to save match point when down 5-0 in the second set. 

While she would get the break, it was far too little too late from the Belgian, as Halep served out the match with consummate ease. After a strong showing, she is no doubt looking to improve on her semi-final appearance last year in New York.

Halep faces Lucie Safarova in the second round after the Czech beat Daria Gavrilova 6-4, 6-4 earlier in the day.

Meanwhile, former world number one Ana Ivanovic was knocked out by world number 89 Denisa Allertova 7-6(4), 6-1 on Louis Armstrong.