Shock defeat in Doha

The opening match of the white group saw a shock victory for Victoria Azarenka on her debut at the Sony Ericsson Championships.

The 20 year old number six seed hit hard, deep groundstrokes to beat former world number one Jelena Jankovic in straight sets 6-2 6-3.

Azarenka outplayed Jankovic who was erratic with her shot selection and made thirty three unforced errors in the match compared to Azarenka's fifteen. The Belarussian raced to a 6-3 3-1 lead before allowing Jankovic to get back into the match at 3-3.

However, a mixture of hard groundstrokes and Jankovic errors, help Azarenka to close out the match winning the next three games.

Azarenka, making her debut at these championships, now takes a commanding lead at the top of the group, at least until tomorrow's play where current world number one Dinara Safina takes on another young lady making her debut in Doha, Caroline Wozniacki. The top two in the group will then advance to the semi final stage and if Azarenka continues to play in this fashion, she may shock everyone and qualify for the semi finals.