Serena overcomes blip to make Rome quarters

World number one Serena Williams overcame a mid-match slump to defeat unseeded Andrea Petkovic in three sets at the Foro Italico on Wednesday to reach the quarter-finals of the Rome Open.

The Australian Open champion won 6-2, 3-6, 6-0 against the 49th ranked German but rarely looked to be at her best.

Serena is playing in her first tournament since winning in Melbourne in January but unlike her second round match on Tuesday when she started slowly, here she was out of the blocks quickly enough.

She broke Petkovic in the fifth game with a backhand winner down the line and then again in the seventh with a cross-court forehand winner.

Petkovic had not been overawed by her illustrious opponent, though, and was matching her for winners while Serena was producing as many unforced errors as the 22-year-old.

Things got interesting in the second set as Petkovic broke Williams in the fourth game and had three break points for a 5-1 lead in the favourite’s next service game. Serena saved those, held and then broke back after Petkovic netted a forehand, a regular feature of her play.

However, the German of Serbian origin then stepped up her game and made two outright forehand winners and a backhand winner on break point to move ahead 5-3.

Serena had two chances to break back immediately but could not take either and she handed her opponent the set with a netted forehand.

That seemed to focus her mind, though, and she romped through the final set with little fuss. ROME, AFP