After Venus Williams was dismissed early on in the Wimbledon competition, many were afraid that her sister Serena might follow. But, according to USA Today, Serena defeated her opponent Zheng Jie and will advance to the next round of the British tennis event.
Williams, who erased all six break points she faced, served three times to stay in the match and held each time at love. She was pushed to deuce serving in the final game but closed out the victory with a volley winner, then hopped in glee on the Centre Court grass.
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The 5-foot-4½ Zheng had only one ace. She played with little flash but plenty of consistency, committing just 17 unforced errors. Williams rocketed a return to break for an 8-7 lead in the final set, then showed how much she wanted to win, throwing back her head and letting out a long scream. She has been stalled at 13 Grand Slam titles since winning Wimbledon for the fourth time in 2010, and dealt with a series of health issues in 2010-11 …
On a sunny, windy afternoon, the retractable Centre Court roof was open after being closed all day Friday, and the breeze that had Williams' skirt flapping might have contributed to her slow start. She struggled with her return, and several times shanked serves by Zheng that barely reached 100 mph.
Venus Williams — a five-time champion who lost in the first round — watched from the first row and showed little concern, yawning more than once.
Read more at USA Today.
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