Belarus's Victoria Azarenka returns a shot Tuesday during her 6-1, 6-4 first-round win over Romania's Monica Niculescu at the Australian Open. EFE
International Sports Desk, Jan 15 (EFE).- Belarus's Victoria Azarenka walked away Tuesday with an easy first-round win over Romania's Monica Niculescu 6-1, 6-4 at the Australian Open.
"I had a good first match. That's what I needed to, you know, get into that competitive spirit, which I did," Azarenka said. "I'm happy."
Azarenka, the top seed and defending champion, needed nearly 90 minutes to put away Niculescu.
In other action on the women's side, American Serena Williams, the No. 3 seed, crushed Romania's Edina Gallovits-Hall 6-0, 6-0 in less than an hour.
Williams, however, had a scare when she injured her right ankle.
"I haven't had enough time to assess it yet. Saw the doctor again. We're just gonna see how it is in a few hours from now," Williams said after the match.
The American star was treated on court and taped up so she could finish the match.
"Obviously, there's pain. Obviously, there's swelling. So it's going to be really important to see how the next few hours unfold," Williams said.
The Australian Open, the year's first Grand Slam tournament, began on Monday in Melbourne.
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