Serena Williams Flattens Sharapova As Rusty Federer, Djokovic Win At US Open
27th August 2019
The 37-year-old American said that after learning she would face Sharapova, "every practice after that was super focused and super intense."
- Serena Williams overwhelmed Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-1 on Monday to reach the second round of the US Open in search of her 24th Grand Slam title
- Six-time US Open champion Williams crushed the five-time major winner from Russia in only 59 minutes, beating Sharapova for the 19th consecutive time and improving to 20-2 in their all-time rivalry
- Swiss third seed Federer, who has a men's record 20 Slam titles, dropped the opening set in 36 minutes, then returned to form and defeated Nagal 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4
NEW YORK, United
States- Serena Williams overwhelmed Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-1 on Monday to
reach the second round of the US Open in search of her 24th Grand Slam title
while "rusty" Roger Federer rallied past Indian qualifier Sumit
Nagal.
Six-time US Open champion Williams crushed the five-time
major winner from Russia in only 59 minutes, beating Sharapova for the 19th
consecutive time and improving to 20-2 in their all-time rivalry.
"Whenever I play her I bring out some of my best
tennis," Williams said. "When you play her you have to be super
focused."
Williams, who next plays 121st-ranked US wildcard Caty
McNally, blasted five aces and 16 winners while Sharapova made 20 unforced
errors.
"She served really well. Found her spots really
well," Sharapova said. "I think that's where she hurt me a lot."
Williams is hoping to match the all-time record of 24 Slam
singles titles won by Margaret Court.
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Swiss third seed Federer, who has a men's record 20 Slam
titles, dropped the opening set in 36 minutes, then returned to form and
defeated Nagal 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4.
"I played like my beard today. I was rusty,"
Federer said.
The shock first set was a wake-up call, a 38-year-old legend
who was 61-0 in Grand Slam first rounds since the 2003 French Open trailing a
22-year-old from New Delhi who is ranked 190th and fell to 0-5 in tour-level
matches.
"Just tried to forget it, play tough, stay with him. It
was a tough first set for me," Federer said. "He came back and played
really strong. I was missing a lot of balls and trying to cut back on unforced
errors.
"It all came back just in time."
Sharapova, the 2006 US Open winner who defeated Williams in
the 2004 Wimbledon final, upset Simona Halep in the first round two years ago
but could not revive that magic.
The 37-year-old American said that after learning she would
face Sharapova, "every practice after that was super focused and super
intense."
Eighth-seeded Williams rolled through the first set in 24
minutes then broke to open the second. She denied Sharapova on two break points
to hold in the fifth game, an impressive backhand winner ending the threat.
"That was definitely a big point for me," Williams
said. "You can't let her get any momentum."
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Williams broke again to 4-1, rescued three break points in
the sixth game to hold serve and broke again to advance, showing no sign of the
back spasms that limited her pre-Open play.
"The body is good," she said. "My back is a
lot better. I'm excited. This is going to be fun."
Top-ranked defending champion Novak Djokovic cruised
into the second round while French Open champion Ashleigh Barty and third seed
Karolina Pliskova struggled but advanced.
Serbian star Djokovic, who has won four of the past five
Grand Slam singles titles, dispatched Spain's 76th-ranked Roberto Carballes
Baena 6-4, 6-1, 6-4.
"Getting out of the blocks, it takes time for you to
feel comfortable on the court," Djokovic said. "I'm quite pleased
with my performance and looking forward to the next one."
Djokovic, trying to become the first back-to-back US Open
winner since Federer won from 2004-2008, will next face Argentina's 56th-ranked
Juan Ignacio Londero.
Djokovic owns 16 Grand Slam titles, four off
Federer's record and two back of Spain's Rafael Nadal. Together the "Big
Three" have won the past 11 Slam titles and are again heavy favorites