Serena survives scare in French Open’s first night match

Serena Williams of the US reacts during the women's singles first round tennis match against Romania's Irina Begu at the court Philippe Chatrier on Day 2 of The Roland Garros 2021 French Open tennis tournament in Paris on Monday – AFP

Paris (Reuters): American Serena Williams survived a scare in the first ever night session match at the French Open as she edged out Romanian Irina-Camelia Begu 7-6(6) 6-2 in the first round on Monday.

Organisers have introduced night matches under the Philippe Chatrier Court lights this year to provide some late drama for the fans but the match was played in an empty stadium because of a COVID-19 curfew in the French capital.

The flat atmosphere hardly helped the 39-year-old Williams who squandered a 5-2 lead in the first set against a tricky opponent who battled back to move into a tiebreaker.

Begu then led 6-4 and Williams got lucky with a return that clipped the tape, before rattling off four points to win the opener with a drive volley she celebrated with a roar that echoed around the empty stands. Three-time Roland Garros champion Williams, who has been stuck on 23 Grand Slam titles, one behind Margaret Court’s all-time record, was far more assured in the second set and managed to claim the victory without further fuss.

Williams has been agonisingly close to matching Court’s record since winning the 2017 Australian Open in her last Grand Slam event before becoming a mother.

She has fallen in four Grand Slam finals and earlier this year lost in the semi-finals at the Australian Open.