Second seed Aryna Sabalenka underlined her US Open title credentials with a dominant straight-set win over Italy’s Lucia Bronzetti in the second round.

The 26-year-old needed just 61 minutes to seal a 6-3 6-1 win before heading over to meet a young fan, who had come dressed as Sabalenka, including a matching tattoo on her left arm.

“To see the young generation being inspired by me – this is what it’s all about,” she said.

“I’m a little bit in shock because this is such an inspiration for me.”

Sabalenka, a beaten finalist at Flushing Meadows last year, was in control from the outset on Louis Armstrong Stadium.

Bronzetti held her own early on, but ultimately the power of Sabalenka was too much for the world number 76.

The Australian Open champion snatched her only break opportunity of the first set to go up 4-2 and calmly saw it out from there.

On a sweltering day in New York, Sabalenka was keen to finish the match quickly and promptly broke twice early in the second set.

A third break in the set sealed a convincing win, in which Sabalenka hit an impressive 24 winners.

“I told myself that I had to stay focused from the first point to the last one, and make sure you’re not going to spend a crazy amount of hours [playing] so you’re ready for the next one,” she said.

“It’s tough conditions to play in but I’m happy I was able to manage the win in two sets and about one hour.”