By Shrivathsa Sridhar

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Defending champion Aryna Sabalenka thumped unseeded Spaniard Cristina Bucsa 6-1 6-4 on Sunday to seal her return to the U.S. Open quarter-finals, ramping up her bid for a first Grand Slam title this year after defeats in two major finals.

The world number one, beaten in both the Australian and French Open finals, enjoyed her most comfortable win in New York this year as she inched closer to becoming the first woman since Serena Williams (2012-14) to win consecutive U.S. Open titles.

An early break in the opening set helped Sabalenka seize the initiative and she built up a 5-1 advantage with a huge overhead smash at the net before comfortably wrapping up the set in only 27 minutes with her rattled opponent looking short of answers.

The 27-year-o

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