Soler grabs P23 Paris-Nice title SPORTS 2424 Monday, March 12, 2018 Indian Wells Serena to play Serena Williams beats Kiki Bertens (Pic courtesy: theguardian) California sister. “Great way to come back.” They met for the first time in the erena Williams set up a mouth- Serena, 36 and vying to become second round of the 1998 Australian watering Indian Wells third the first woman to win three Indian Open which Venus won 7-6 (7/4), roundS showdown against her sister Wells titles, clinched the victory 6-1. This is the earliest they will Venus with a straight-sets victory against Bertens on her second face each other since that Melbourne over Kiki Bertens on Saturday. match point when Bertens blasted a meeting 20 years ago. Venus and Serena have faced each forehand wide. Serena, unseeded in the wake of other 28 times in their legendary Serena won 54 percent of her her long layoff, admitted she would Venus careers and they are now meeting second-serve points and broke have preferred not to come up against in Serena’s first tournament back on Bertens’s serve six times. her sister so soon in the draw. the WTA Tour since she beat Venus Still showing some rust from her “It’s a huge difference to play 6-4, 6-4 in the 2017 Australian Open long layoff, Serena hit just one ace her in the semi-finals or even the final. and made 37 unforced errors to 32 quarter-finals or a final as opposed Venus Williams plays “(We are) having to play each for Bertens. to the third round. You know, we a shot (Pic courtesy: other in the third round, one of us She takes a career head-to-head can always stay in the tournament wtatennis) is going to be gone,” Serena said. “I record over Venus of 17-11 into their longer if the both of us are in the would prefer to play someone else, third-round clash. tournament,” Serena said. (AFP) anybody else, literally anybody else, but it has to happen now. So it is what it is.” Results: Second round Serena, who lifted her 23rd Grand Slam title in Melbourne last year, was Anastasija Sevastova bt Monica Puig 6-2, 2-6, 6-1 then already pregnant with daughter Julia Gorges bt Natalia Vikhlyantseva 6-4, 6-1 Alexis Olympia, who was born in Danielle Collins bt Madison Keys 6-3, 7-6(1) September. Venus did her part to set up the Sofya Zhuk bt Magdalena Rybarikova 6-3, 2-6, 7-5 marquee match when she dismantled Carla Suarez bt Hsieh Su-Wei 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 world No. 35 Sorana Cirstea 6-3, 6-4 Elina Svitolina bt Mona Barthel 6-4, 6-3 in just 79 minutes. Serena then took centre stage, Aliaksandra Sasnovich bt Anett Kontaveit 6-2, 6-4 needing just under two hours to Caroline Garcia bt Jennifer Brady 6-4, 6-4 dispatch Bertens, of the Netherlands, Daria Gavrilova bt Yanina Wickmayer 7-6(3), 6-2 7-6 (7/5), 7-5. “I mean, she looked like she never Elena Vesnina bt Catherine Bellis 2-6, 6-1, 6-1 lost a step,” Venus said of her younger Caroline Wozniacki bt Lara Arruabarrena 6-4, 6-1 Darya Kasatkina bt Katerina Siniakova 6-2, 5-2, retired Hon.Chairman Najeb Yacob Alhamer | Responsible Editor Mahmood AI Mahmood | Managing Editor Soman Baby | Managing Director P. Unnikrishnan | Adviser Med Jones Advt : Strategic Publicity & Advertising Co.W.L.L | Tel: 17270710, Fax17256470, Email: [email protected] | Newsroom: Tel: 17579911, Fax17250150, Email: [email protected] Printed and published by Al Ayam Publishing | Subscription & circulation: Tel: 38444698/17579877/Fax17250150, Email:[email protected] | Website: www.dt.bh.