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Favoured to win the U.S. Open, Serena Williams found herself having to fight to stay alive during the Round of 32 on Monday at the Western & Southern Open. Considered a prelim to the U.S. Open, Williams\u2019s frustration could be heard reverberating off the walls of the empty stadium.<\/p>\n
Williams came out strong against expecting a rather uneventful match. However, No.72 ranked Arantxa Rus<\/a> forced Williams into a tiebreaker after winning the second set and putting up a fight in the third. The match was one of Williams longest matches in recent history, but one Williams managed to win 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (0) to advance to the Western & Southern Open<\/a> final 16.<\/p>\n The absence of fans clearly had Williams having to adjust as she fought to get into the groove. Commenting, Williams stated,<\/p>\n \u201cI had a crowd in my head or something, for me, it was like there was a crowd there.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Rus was able to mount a defence against Williams with a combination of left-handed baseline stokes. That saw Williams struggling and giving up four back-to-back games during the second set and again in the third, which ultimately forced the tiebreaker. Rus pushed herself to within two points of victory, but after a double fault, a defiant Serena Williams<\/a> took control and edged out the Danish player for the win. Williams showed her determination and the skills that have helped her win Grand Slam after Grand Slam.<\/p>\n WTA<\/strong><\/p>\n