After a day where seeded players struggled to advance, Day 2 provided more first-round challenges for the top competitors and a match that had the feel of one that should be held in a later round of the tournament.

In a rematch of the infamous “injury timeout that was not an injury timeout” match of 2013 at Melbourne, Sloane Stephens and Victoria Azarenka squared off in a first-round meeting in Hisense Arena. Both competitors entered the tournament unseeded, but it was Azarenka who had the look of a seeded player, taking the match in straight sets.

2014 was basically a lost season for Azarenka, who could never fully come back from injury. Meanwhile, Stephens found herself in a funk, taking a step backwards and displaying moments where she appeared uninterested in 2014. Both looked towards Melbourne to find their footing again. Early in the first set, there were moments where each showed glimpses of the type of high-quality tennis that so many have become accustomed to. However, there were incidents where rust was shown as well, particularly in service games where each struggled to hold serve early. But it was the veteran from Belarus who found stability in service games first, and after a handful of loose shots off Stephens’ racket, Azarenka took the first set.

In the second set, Azarenka looked to be the more confident player, while Stephens appeared to be searching for answers and consistency on her serve.  She showed signs of battling back into the match but continued to find it difficult holding serve, and Azarenka found a crack, breaking to gain an advantage. As the set progressed, Azarenka controlled play, while the American was never able to make inroads. And in a match that took just over an hour and 15 minutes, Azarenka advanced behind a 6-3 6-2 win.

The match was not a clean performance from either player, with the pair combining for 50 unforced errors to just 27 winners. But Azarenka found success against Stephens’ serve, breaking five times while dropping just one service game of her own. She won her third head-to-head meeting with the American and has not dropped a set in their matches.

Meanwhile, eighth-seeded Caroline Wozniacki came into the Australian Open nursing an injured wrist that forced her withdrawal from Sydney last week.  On Tuesday, she met Taylor Townsend in Margaret Court Arena and in a more difficult test than the score indicated, she advanced to the second round, 7-6 6-2.

Wozniacki showed no ill effects from the injury early in the first set, gaining a break.  However, she did feel the effects of the scrappy American, who fought back to force a first-set tiebreak. There, the Dane gained control, taking the tiebreak with ease.

In the second set, Townsend continued to show that she planned to be a difficult out for the 24-year-old, battling toe-to-toe early. However, Wozniacki finally wore down the young American and pulled away, taking the second set and the match. It was a case of too many unforced errors for Townsend, who was forced to take more chances with Wozniacki playing her typical clean game with minimal mistakes. Wozniacki’s difficult path continues in the second round, where she will meet Azarenka.

After dominating Wimbledon last season, Petra Kvitova has become a favorite to earn additional major titles going forward. She began her campaign to win her first Grand Slam event outside London on Tuesday against Richel Hogenkamp of the Netherlands. The young Dutchwoman was no match for the Czech, who advanced to the second round, 6-1 6-4.

In the first set, Kvitova dictated play with her overpowering style, firing 13 winners while allowing just one from Hogenkamp. It took the veteran just 21 minutes to capture the first set.

Hogenkamp showed fight in the second set, regaining a service break lost early. Kvitova continued to control the match but struck 18 unforced errors. Nonetheless, on the heels of her six aces and 18 winners, she took the set and the match. She allowed just four winners off the racket of Hogenkamp in the match. The Czech played with the confidence of a champion and continues to be a favorite at Melbourne.

In other notable results from the day session, 11th-seeded Dominka Cibulkova defeated Kirsten Flipkens in three sets. The Slovak is seeking to duplicate her 2014 run to the final.  Elsewhere, Alize Cornet, Sam Stosur, and Garbine Muguruza avoided the fate of many seeded players on Monday by advancing to the second round.