Serena Williams made a sluggish however profitable begin Monday to her newest pursuit of a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title at Roland Garros. The American star is chasing an elusive 24th Grand Slam title to match Margaret Courtroom’s all-time mark, however clay is her least favoured floor. An error-prone starting from Williams left world quantity 102 Kristie Ahn serving for the primary set earlier than the three-time Roland Garros champion prevailed 7-6 (7/2), 6-Zero.
Williams, taking part in on the French Open for the 18th time, dropped serve twice as Ahn moved 5-Four forward within the opener in a rematch of their first-round encounter at Flushing Meadows.
However the sixth seed compelled a tie-break that she sealed with an ace after a 74-minute slog earlier than charging to an finally snug victory.
Promoted
“She performed very properly within the first set, it wasn’t simple for me and he or she hit quite a lot of winners,” stated Williams. “It was vital for me to remain centered.”
Williams, seeded sixth right here, has not gone past the final 16 in Paris since her defeat to Garbine Muguruza within the 2016 ultimate. Her final main got here on the 2017 Australian Open whereas pregnant.
Subjects talked about on this article
