Samantha Stosur has battled her way through to the second round of the WTA event in Charleston, South Carolina.

The 10th-seeded Australian saved 16 break points in the 6-4 6-4 win over world No.124 Aleksandra Krunic on Monday, in a match that lasted an hour and 39 minutes.

World No.26 Stosur, who won the event in 2010 and made the semi-finals in 2012, struggled with strong winds as she was broken four times and sent down 11 double faults in the topsy-turvy performance.

“My tennis could have been a little bit better, and my serve especially,” she said.

“Whether it was the conditions, a bit of lack of focus at times, whatever the case, it’s certainly something that I need to rectify for the next round.”

She will now face Slovakian Jana Cepelova in the second round.