Sisters clash: ‘I abhor every time we play’

Indian Wells, March 11

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Serena Williams continued her comeback with a 7-6(5) 7-5 win over Kiki Bertens at the Indian Wells Masters tournament on Saturday, setting up a third-round encounter with her sister Venus.

Serena, who is returning to the sport after taking more than a year away to have a baby, was ragged at times but used her power to wear down the Dutch 29th seed.

“I’m getting there. I have such a long way to go,” the 23-time Grand Slam champion said. “It definitely felt better than the first round, but I’m still a little rusty. I’m still making errors that I don’t normally make. I call this a trial run, of travelling with the baby, and all of this is just so new to me.” 

Venus moved into the third round by beating Romanian Sorana Cirstea 6-3 6-4 in the preceding match. Monday’s meeting will be the earliest between the Williams sisters since their first professional match in the second round of the 1998 Australian Open.

It will be the 29th between the pair, with Serena leading the head-to-head record 17-11. “Obviously, I wish it was anybody else in the draw, literally anybody, but that’s okay,” Serena said. “I really abhor every time we play, but I do enjoy the battle when I’m out there. It’s just afterwards I don’t like it as much.” 

Venus recovered from a breakdown in the second set against Cirstea, winning five consecutive games to close it out. “It takes me a few games, a few matches before hopefully you get it where you want it to be,” said the number eight seed after her first match in a month. “(I was) just trying to work the point, do what it takes to win the point. I haven’t played in a long time.” 

Also moving into the third round was defending champion Elena Vesnina, who beat Catherine Bellis 2-6 6-1 6-1. Second seed Caroline Wozniacki beat Lara Arruabarrena 6-4 6-1, while fourth seed Elina Svitolina defeated Mona Barthel 6-4 6-3.

Seeds Madison Keys (15), Magdalena Rybarikova (18) and Anett Kontaveit (28) all lost on Saturday. 

Rain plays spoilsport 

Spanish veteran Fernando Verdasco used his powerful serve to upset third seed Grigor Dimitrov 7-6(4) 4-6 6-3, while Roger Federer’s tournament debut was hampered by rain. The two-hour-plus Verdasco-Dimitrov match delayed the start of the evening session on centre court, where top seed Federer finally made his first appearance in the event, up against 67th-ranked Argentine Federico Delbonis.

The defending champion took little time breaking left-hander Delbonis in the fourth game, and claimed the first set 6-3. But rain, a rarity in the desert, stopped play at 2-2 in the second set.

Earlier, fifth seed Dominic Thiem edged out hard-hitting Greek teenager Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-2 3-6 6-3. — Agencies