Top-seeded Serena Williams continued her dominance through the first week of the U.S. Open and added a piece of history to her name by eliminating Sweden’s Johanna Larsson 6-2, 6-1 in her third-round match at NY on Saturday.
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Serena Williams chalked up a record-breaking 307th career Grand Slam victory to book her place in the US Open last 16 with victory over Johanna Larsson.
A shoulder problem contributed to Williams’ third-round exit at the hands of Elina Svitolina of Ukraine at the Olympics, but she believes she fit enough to finally edge past Graf.
For whatever it’s worth, with her Wimbledon title, Williams became just the second woman in tennis history, along with Navratilova, to win the third major of the year after losing in the final of the first two.
She was surprised by the variety Williams displayed Saturday, especially with some heavy-spin, high-bouncing strokes.
Sixth seed Venus Williams, whose seven Grand Slam titles include US Open crowns in 2000 and 2001, opens the night session on Ashe against 26th-seeded Laura Siegemund.
The fluorescent pink sleeves, she said, make her think of the superhero characters Wonder Woman and Superwoman.
“To be up there with both men and women is something that’s super rare, and it actually feels really good”.
“I hope I can play even better than today in the next round and reach my first quarter-final here”.
Williams’s first two points of the match were crunching aces that left the 47th-ranked Larsson frozen in her tracks, setting the tone for an afternoon where the 22-times grand slam champion was dominant in the rallies (24 winners) and on her serve (six aces).
Williams noted that female tennis players had been at the forefront of trying to achieve equality in their sport, and she said it was important for them to push for similar conditions for other female athletes. Radwanska beat France’s Caroline Garcia, an opponent she has had frequent difficulty with, 6-2, 6-3.
In the one hour it took to subdue Larsson, Williams again appeared untroubled by the shoulder injury that has slowed her since her Wimbledon triumph. “I was very solid from my serves and able to return her huge serves”.
The 34-year-old has looked good so far in this year’s Open. Would like to take one more step, several more steps. “I m doing a lot of work on it so I can keep it in this position”.
Babos put a scare into Romanian fifth seed Halep, surging back in the second set and taking a 3-1 lead in the third before falling 6-1, 2-6, 6-4.
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Konta is never one to get carried away in public, about anything, and she is just focused on what’s in front of her.
