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J&S Cup: Venus enters 2nd round
Five-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams beat Polish teenager Urszula Radwanska 6-3, 6-3 on Wednesday.
- Indo-Asian News Service
- Updated: February 25, 2007 10:40 AM IST
Read Time:2 min
Warsaw: Five-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams beat Polish teenager Urszula Radwanska 6-3, 6-3 on Wednesday in the opening round of the J&S Cup, her first tournament in more than three months. The 13th-ranked American, who's been sidelined with an elbow injury since losing in the first round of the Australian Open on January 16, will meet former No. 1 Martina Hingis in the clay-court event. Also, top-seeded Kim Clijsters defeated Ukraine qualifier Julia Vakulenko 6-3, 6-2 in 51 minutes; and third-seeded Elena Dementieva beat another Ukraine qualifier, Tatiana Perebiynis, 6-2, 6-0. Williams, who had been out with strained ligaments in her right elbow, said she was ''really eager'' to get back into competition and described her form as ''pretty solid.'' ''I think I'll just improve on that, and each match at this point is important for me to get a rhythm and start dominating,'' Williams said. ''I did rehab and tried to get better the best that I could,'' Williams added. ''I wasn't playing at 100 per cent - preparation or health - and I didn't want to come back until I knew I could do that. '' The 15-year-old Radwanska, making her WTA debut, was unable to emulate older sister Agnieszka Radwanska, who ousted 12th-ranked Anastasia Myskina on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the 17-year-old Agnieszka Radwanska topped the Czech Republic's Klara Koukalova 6-1, 6-2 and will play third-seeded Elena Dementieva of Russia in the quarterfinals. Williams dominated from the outset, breaking Radwanska twice early to lead 5-3 in the first set. She served an ace to go up 30-0, before Radwanska hit a two-handed backhand wide on set point. The second set was a repeat, with Williams opening a 5-3 lead. Radwanska seemed to tire and double-faulted to end the match. ''We both like to dictate and control the point, even though we have different styles,'' Williams said of her second-round match against Hingis. ''I guess it'll be like old times.'' The second-ranked Clijsters, who led Belgium past defending champion Russia in the Fed Cup two weeks ago on clay, broke Vakulenko to go up 5-3 in the first set and then served it out. The Belgian then broke Vakulenko to open the second set and cruised from there. Clijsters next plays fifth-seeded Francesca Schiavone of Italy, who beat Russia's Elena Likhovtseva 6-4, 6-1. (AP)
Topics mentioned in this article
Tennis
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