Top seed Venus Williams continued her winning ways on Thursday, defeating Urszula Radwanska 6-4, 6-2 in an hour and 26 minutes to book her place in the quarter finals of the 2016 Taiwan Open, where she will play Latvia’s Anastasija Sevastova.
Williams Comes from Behind to Take Opening Set
Despite winning two of their three previous meetings, Williams didn’t have it all her own way in the opening stages of this encounter, as some untimely unforced errors from the world number 12 and solid hitting from Radwanska was enough to secure the Pole the early break in the fourth game. Unfortunately for Radwanska, she was unable to keep that early advantage as just two games later, the world number 113 found herself staring down her first break point, which she was unable to fend off, consequently handing the break right back to Williams. Now trailing 3-4, the top seed was slowly but surely beginning to assert her authority on this second round encounter when she raced out to a 40-0 lead, but some strong hitting from her Polish counterpart was enough to push it to deuce. Despite facing a break point, the 35-year-old would go on to hold and from there, it was all Venus Williams. As Williams began to grow in confidence, Radwanska began to falter under the pressure, handing Williams a second break of serve and a chance to serve out the opening set at 5-4. It took two tries but at the second time of asking, it was the top seed who sealed the deal, taking the opening set 6-4.
Williams Withstands Late Fightback from Radwanska; Books Place in Quarter Finals
From there, the seven-time Grand Slam champion seemed to run away with the match, breaking her opponent three times to race to a seemingly decisive set and 5-0 lead. However, as the finish line got closer, Williams began to tighten up, hitting error after error as Radwanska’s tactically astute game was able to recover one of the three breaks. Unfortunately for the Polish number three, it was a case of too little, too late as Williams made no mistake closing out the match for a second time, sealing a comprehensive 6-4, 6-2 win with an emphatic hold at love.
"My opponent started so strong - she went [up] 4-1, but I was hoping to still win that set," Williams said. "After that, things went almost perfectly for me, so I'm really happy with that and to be playing again tomorrow."
A Look at the Final Match Statistics
Statistically speaking, it was a very solid match from Williams, who seemed to outclass Radwanska in nearly every department. From the service line, the former world number one made 60% of her first serves, winning 67% of the points behind her first delivery, and a respectable 58% behind her second. In addition, the 35-year-old broke her Polish counterpart five times, and is showing no signs of slowing down as she continues her quest for a 49th WTA singles title.