Kvitova, a 21-year-old from the Czech Republic, sprayed 32 errors in the first set and 20 in the second while Dulgheru dug in and never let her off the hook, playing with more intensity the more frustrated Kvitova became.
Dulgheru, 22, has climbed the rankings in the past three years since turning professional, reaching as high as No. 26. But she had yet to make many waves at a Slam, never getting past the third round.
For a while, Sharapova appeared to be headed for the same fate in her match against Heather Watson, a 19-year-old from England. Sharapova wobbled through a first set full of errors and double faults before finding her usual powerful game and pulling out a 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 victory. It took 2 hours 34 minutes and much more sweat than Sharapova anticipated.
“There’s no doubt she’s a great up-and-coming player and she played some of her best tennis while I made too many errors,’’ Sharapova, seeded No. 3, said. “The goal is just to get through.’’
At night, 2000-01 Open champion Venus Williams played her first match in two months and beat 91st-ranked Vesna Dolonts of Russia, 6-4, 6-3. Williams hit six aces and 28 total winners against the weary Dolonts, who needed 12 hours to reach the Billy Jean King National Tennis Center from Moscow after storm-related flight delays. Also, third-seeded Roger Federer cruised past Santiago Giraldo, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2.
The Kvitova-Dulgheru match followed a similarly frustration-filled match between US teenager Ryan Harrison and the No. 27 seed, Marin Cilic of Croatia.
A year after electrifying the Open with two thrilling matches and the promise of his future, the only sparks Harrison could manage came in temper tantrums in a 6-2, 7-5, 7-6 (8-6) loss.
Although Cilic struggled with his own game and confidence at times, he mostly sat back and waited for Harrison to make mistakes at crucial times. He complied, especially at the most important junctures, and Harrison tumbled out of the tournament in a hail of missed shots and misplaced emotion.
The top-ranked American man in the field was having no such issues. No. 8 Mardy Fish steamrolled unseeded Tobias Kamke of Germany, 6-2, 6-2, 6-1. An American wild card, 16-year-old Madison Keys, made a bit of a splash, beating 37-year-old American Jill Craybas, 6-2, 6-4.
