Serena Williams relishing ‘tough match’ against sister Venus in Lexington

WTA Tour
Serena Williams shadowy

Serena Williams is excited to face sister Venus in the Lexington Open second round and feels the “tough match” will provide the perfect preparation for the US Open which starts on August 31.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion made a winning return to the WTA Tour on Tuesday but needed three sets to get past Bernarda Pera in Kentucky.

It was the No 1 seed’s first competitive fixture since a Fed Cup qualifier in February and she eventually got close to top gear to win 4-6, 6-4, 6-1.

A straight-sets victory later in the day for Venus Williams over Victoria Azarenka by a 6-3, 6-3 score saw her book a last-16 meeting with her younger sister.

Serena told a press conference: “I have a really tough match in the next round, but it is good in general because I haven’t played.

“A lot of players have been playing little things and little matches and playing against other players but I’ve only been training.

“This was really good for me, I was missing shots but I was like ‘oh, I should probably hit it that way’ so it was trying to get back into the swing of things.”

Coco Gauff, who beat Venus Williams at Wimbledon last year, secured her spot in the next round with a 7-5, 7-5 success over fellow American Caroline Dolehide.

Fifth seed Yulia Putintseva also progressed into the second round with ease after a 6-0, 6-4 win over Aila Tomlianovic.

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Coco Gauff Serena Williams Venus Williams

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