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Serena Williams advances to quarter finals of Rogers Cup
An elated Serena Williams after defeating Kirsten Flipkens, 6-0, 6-3 at the Rogers Cup, August 8, 2013. PHOTO/Getty Images
World No. 1 Serena Williams easily booked her spot in the quarter-finals of the WTA Rogers Cup, routing 13th-seeded Kirsten Flipkens in straight sets.
Williams on Thursday avenged a first-round loss by her sister, Venus, to Flipkens, beating the Belgian 6-0, 6-3 in a third round match in the US$2.4 million tournament at the Rexall Center stadium.
“After I won the first set I definitely thought about Venus, and I thought about what a good comeback Kirsten had, so I thought, ‘I’m not going to get over-confident,'” Williams said. “I was just trying to stay really focused as well as really intense at that moment.”
Flipkens, a surprise semi-finalist at Wimbledon, ousted Venus Williams 0-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the first round. But she couldn’t repeat the upset against Serena, the reigning US Open and French Open champ. Serena won this tournament in 2001 and 2011 and was the runner-up in 2000.
Williams blasted 10 aces, had one double fault and lost just one point (14 of 15) on her second serve in the 56-minute match.
Williams moves on to the quarter-finals where she next faces Slovak Magdalena Rybarikova.
Williams meanwhile said she is pleased to have Venus back on tour after her older sister missed substantial time with injuries.
“I’m happy she’s around,” Williams said. “She’s trying to get in the swing of things and play some matches and get more match tough, but it’s always good to have her around, and it’s good for her to be back.”
The 31-year-old Williams will be facing the younger Rybarikova, 24, for the first time in their careers.
Meanwhile, 14th-seeded American, Sloane Stephens fell to Agnieszka Radwanska 6-1, 7-6 (7/2).
Radwanska, the 2012 Wimbledon runner-up, and Errani will face each other in the quarters with Radwanska leading 6-2 in their head-to-head career series. Errani won their last encounter earlier this year.
Copyright 2013 AFP