(Reuters) - Belinda Bencic, playing with a new found sense of freedom after winning a gold medal in the singles competition at the Tokyo Olympics, breezed past Dutchwoman Arantxa Rus 6-4 6-4 to reach the second round of the U.S. Open on Tuesday.

Bencic, who reached the U.S. Open semi-finals in 2019 and sat out last year's tournament amid the COVID-19 outbreak, used a solid service game to improve to 3-0 all-time against the left-handed Rus.