'Like a steamroller'
Serena Williams flattens Tauziat to reach quarterfinals
Posted: Wednesday February 24, 1999 03:22 PM
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Williams was always on the attack against Tauziat. AP |
PARIS (AP) -- Serena Williams recorded her best result of the year on Wednesday, brushing aside the challenge of No. 2 seed Nathalie Tauziat at the $520,000 Gaz de France tennis open.
The 17-year-old American beat the No. 10-ranked French player 6-1, 6-4, in one hour and 10 minutes.
After taking the first set in just 25 minutes, Williams seemed to lose her nerve, with Tauziat breaking service twice to storm back from 1-4 to 4-4.
After that setback Williams broke back immediately, her opponent double-faulting at break point, and won the third of her match points to advance to the third round.
"I played great in the first set and at the start of the second. Then I started making a lot of unforced errors and Nathalie played much better," Williams said.
Earlier, with Williams at set point in the first set, umpire Fiona Edwards overruled a baseline linesman who had called a Williams' shot out, much to the anger of Tauziat.
Still, Williams, who won the only previous meeting between the two players, always looked a class above the below-par Tauziat, a player 14 years her senior.
"When I tried to be aggressive, she was just as aggressive," the French No. 2 told reporters after the match. "She always attacks, she is like a steamroller."
World No. 1 Martina Hingis moved closer to a much-awaited repeat
of the Australian Open final against France's Amelie Mauresmo,
easily beating Yugoslavia's Sandra Nacuk 6-1, 6-1, in just 41
minutes.
Mauresmo beat off the challenge of compatriot Laurence Andretto,
6-2, 7-5, and will play Hingis in Friday's quarterfinals if she
beats Karina Habsudova.
Sandra Kleinova of the Czech Republic was a surprise winner,
beating France's Alexandra Fusai -- who is more than 100 places
higher in the current rankings -- 6-2, 2-6, 6-0.
Virginia Ruano-Pascual of Spain will face No. 3 seed Dominique
van Roost of Belgium in the second round after beating Japan's Ai
Sugiyama, 6-1, 3-6, 6-1.
Croatia's Iva Majoli also advanced with a straight sets win
against Elena Taarkova of Ukraine.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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