Toronto, ON – Last year's runner-up Li Na was an easy second-round winner Wednesday at the $2.369 million Rogers Cup.
The fourth-seeded Chinese star handled Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 6-1, 6-4 on the hardcourts at Rexall Centre. The former French Open champion and two-time Australian Open runner-up won following a lengthy rain delay on Day 3.
Li lost to Czech slugger Petra Kvitova in last year's Rogers Cup finale in Montreal, as this tournament shifts between Toronto and Montreal each year.
Meanwhile, seventh-seeded Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli landed in the win column Wednesday by drilling American qualifier Lauren Davis, 6-0, 6-3. The French star will face Slovak Magdalena Rybarikova on Thursday.
In other action involving seeds, No. 10 Roberta Vinci of Italy erased Russian Ekaterina Makarova 6-0, 6-4, France's Alize Cornet upended No. 11 Russian Maria Kirilenko 7-5, 7-5, and No. 14 American Sloane Stephens held off German Mona Barthel 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.
Also on Day 3, a hot Rybarikova dismissed American Varvara Lepchenko 6-4, 6-2. Rybarikova captured her second straight Washington, D.C., title last week.
The newest Rogers Cup titlist will claim $426,000.
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