Serena Williams: Australian Open delay, an unwanted blessing

US tennis ace Serena Williams says season-opening Grand Slam's postponement due to Covid-19 has afforded her extra time to recover from injury

Serena Williams admitted on Monday that she might have been forced to skip the Australian Open if it hadn’t been delayed over the Coronavirus, saying she needed extra time to shake off the achilles injury which cut short her 2020 season. 

Williams, who beat Daria Gavrilova 6-1, 6-4 in her Yarra Valley Classic opener in Melbourne, suffered the injury at last year’s US Open then withdrew from the French Open before the second round, ending her 2020 campaign. 

But the 39-year-old, who will launch her latest attempt for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title next week, got extra time to recover when the Open was postponed for three weeks over Coronavirus complications. 

“I couldn’t practice because of my achilles,” she told reporters. “I needed time. I don’t think I would have been here if it was during the regular season. “[The delay] was an unwanted blessing. I definitely was pushing the limits, but I’m here.” 

The seven-time Australian Open champion started sluggishly, losing the first three points on serve, before quickly overpowering the Australian. Gavrilova, ranked 451, was overmatched against her idol but used her speed around the court to make Williams work harder in a more competitive second set. 

Williams, looking to get matches under her belt before the Australian Open, will next play Tsvetana Pironkova in the round of 16. World No. 2 Simona Halep wore down Anastasia Potapova with a 6-4, 6-4 victory. 

Earlier, teenage sensation Coco Gauff showed only glimpses of the form that fuelled her dazzling run at last year’s Australian Open during a gruelling 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 7-6 (7/5) win over Jil Teichmann at the Gippsland Trophy. 

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever

"Exciting news! Mid-day is now on WhatsApp Channels Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!