Paris: In the absence of Serena Williams, elder sister Venus Williams kept the family flag flying at Roland Garros here Wednesday. The 37-year-old, the oldest player in the women’s singles draw of the French Open played some exhilarating tennis to rout Japanese Kusumi Nara 6-3, 6-1 in a second round match that lasted 62 minutes.
Meanwhile defending French Open champion Garbine Muguruza had to claw her way back from a set down to survive a scare from talented Anett Kontaveit and move into the third round with 6-7, 6-4, 6-2 win.
It was a slow start for the Spanish player, but she eventually played her way into the contest, growing in confidence after the shaky beginning. She eased through after 128 minutes when Kontaveit slapped a backhand wide.
Tenth seed Venus did not have any such problems. She ground her Japanese opponent into the red Parisian dust in a contest that at times almost veered into miss-match territory.
Venus never appeared extended on the Philippe Chatrier court, but she nevertheless delivered a display of exquisite shot-making to a crowd denied a real contest. “You know, it’s always a joy when you can control the match,” she smiled afterwards. “That always feels good.”
The win makes her the oldest woman to reach the third round at the French Open since Billie-Jean King in 1982. Next up for her is Belgian Elise Mertens who beat Dutch qualifier Richel Hogenkamp three and four.
Meanwhile an error-prone Petra Kvitova failed to sustain her French Open campaign going down to Bethanie Matek-Sands 7-6(7-5), 7-6(7-5). The Czech player will blame herself for the loss after committing 45 unforced errors in the second round match. She surrendered the tie with her ninth double fault.
Agencies
