Australian Open 2013: Serena Williams, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga advance to 3rd round

Serena Williams in action against Garine Muguruza. PHOTO/Reuters

Seventh-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga moved through to the third round at the Australian Open with a 6-3, 7-6 (1), 6-3 victory over Japan’s Go Soeda on Thursday.

Tsonga, the Australian Open runner-up in 2008, has reached at least the third round in his last 18 Grand Slam appearances.

Tsonga could meet ninth-seeded countryman Richard Gasquet in the fourth round this year and Roger Federer in the quarterfinals.

Serena Williams showed few signs of an injured ankle in a 6-2, 6-0 win vs. Garine Muguruza.

Williams injured her right ankle in her first-round match against Edina Gallovits-Hall, falling to the court, but still managed to complete a 6-0, 6-0 victory. She had a private practice session on Wednesday and didn’t seem bothered by the injury in Thursday’s 75-minute match.

With the win, Williams stayed on track to win her third Grand Slam in a row — she also won last year’s Wimbledon and U.S. Open — and a chance to complete the second “Serena Slam” of her career — holding all four majors at the same time.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press