Williams comes through testing match
| Australian Open |
|---|
| Venue: Melbourne Park Dates: 18-31 January |
| Coverage: Live radio and text commentary on all Andy Murray matches. Listen to Tennis Breakfast on Radio 5 live sports extra and the BBC Sport website from 07:00 GMT every day. |
Defending champion Serena Williams reached the second round of the Australian Open with a tense 6-4 7-5 win over Italian Camila Giorgi in her first tour match in four months.
The American, seeking to equal Steffi Graf’s Open-era record of 22 Grand Slam titles, went into the tournament with doubts over a knee injury.
But the 33-year-old world number one came through a testing match unscathed.
Sixth seed Petra Kvitova beat Luksika Kumkhum 6-3 6-1 on a scorching day.
The two-time Wimbledon champion also had problems in the build-up to the tournament, with a stomach virus forcing her out of two warm-up events.
“I’m very pleased how I played and how I handled the nerves,” said the Czech. “I had an interrupted lead-up and lost some weight but I’m feeling much better now.”
Italy’s Sara Errani, the 17th seed, had injury problems during her match and became the first women’s seed knocked out, losing 1-6 7-5 6-1 to 21-year-old Russian Margarita Gasparyan.
| Elite players and their injuries and illnesses | |
|---|---|
| Serena Williams (left knee) | Simona Halep (left ankle) |
| Garbine Muguruza (left foot) | Agnieszka Radwanska (leg injury) |
| Maria Sharapova (left forearm) | Petra Kvitova (stomach virus) |