Venus Downs Vandeweghe In Rome
ROME, Italy – 1999 champion Venus Williams got off to a winning start in her campaign at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia with a solid victory over fellow American CoCo Vandeweghe, 6-4, 6-3.
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In her first match since the green clay of Charleston almost a month ago, the former No.1 was drawn against the big serving No.40 Vandeweghe in the first women’s match of the day at the Foro Italico. Even though they are familiar with each other as Fed Cup teammates, it was the pair’s first encounter.
“I have hit with her a little bit at Fed Cup but not really sure what to expect,” Williams said after the match. “I imagine that on the clay I have a little bit more advantage, just having played more matches on clay. I think that helped a lot.”
It took a while for both players to find their range in the first set. Neither of them able to really assert themselves during their service games with Williams serving at 44% and Vandeweghe at 50%. Williams kept pressuring the younger American with her net play and angles until she finally struck, breaking for 5-3. Vandeweghe broke right back, but Williams responded in kind to take the first set.
In the second set, Williams backed up an early break with a comfortable hold to get a 3-1 lead. She continued to jam up Vandeweghe with a punishing body serve, leaving her to wreak havoc on the open court.
Despite the stats initially skewing to Vandeweghe’s favor, it was Williams who kept her head during the key points: she converted three of the five break chances that went her way, and Vandeweghe just one of five. Williams struck 13 winners and 16 unforced errors to Vandeweghe’s 20 and 27.
Also in the bottom half of the draw, a pair of qualifiers caused a shakeup by taking out two seeded players. Monica Puig weathered a mid-match surge from No.15 seed Elina Svitolina before advancing 6-1, 4-6, 6-1, and Heather Watson broke Italian hearts when she sent the No.14 seed packing in emphatic fashion, ousting the 2014 finalist 6-4, 3-6, 6-0.
Meanwhile Teliana Pereira, Ekaterina Makarova, Madison Keys and Barbora Strycova also made their way to the second round.
There's that @VenusesWilliams victory twirl ? #ibi16 pic.twitter.com/PMLeNcRP6D
— WTA (@WTA) May 9, 2016