The six-time US Open winner Serena Williams qualified for the third round of this year’s edition of the tournament. The 40-year-old American forged a difficult 2-1 (7:6, 2:6, 6:2) victory over the second-seeded Anett Kontaveit. The match lasted almost two and a half hours.
The first set was extremely contested and a game for the game. Serena Williams first managed to break through at 5:4 but failed to keep it, and in the next game Anett Kontaveit returned the break to 5:5. In the end, the set reached a tiebreaker, where the American showed healthier nerves and won by 7-4.
In the second set, Anett Kontaveit sharply raised the pace in her performance and from the beginning took control with two quick breaks for 3:0. She allowed one of the break to be returned, but immediately after that, for the third time, broke the service of her opponent and eventually led to 6:2 success.
In the decisive third set, the pancake turned and this time Serena Williams took control with two quick breaks at the beginning, after which she did not miss the initiative, with a third breakthrough putting a point of the dispute for the final 6:2.
“I continue to be a very good player. This is what I do best. I love the challenges. Yes, I haven’t played many matches, but I haven’t stopped training”, said the happy Serena Williams. “Honestly, I look at this participation as a bonus. There is nothing to prove. There is nothing to win, simply because I have nothing to lose. It’s been so long, we’ll get together again. I’m excited, I’ll use the match as a workout”, she added.
In the next round, the American will play with Ajla Tomljanović, who defeated Evgeniya Rodina by 2-1 (1:6, 6:2, 7:5).
