US off to strong start in Fed Cup defence
Defending Fed Cup champions the United States were one point from advancing to the semi-finals Saturday after a comfortable victory for Venus Williams, with sister Serena waiting in the wings for her much anticipated comeback.
Seven-time Grand Slam winner Venus Williams needed an hour and 19 minutes to brush aside her 124th-ranked Dutch opponent Arantxa Rus 6-1, 6-4.
A more laboured win followed for the mercurial CoCo Vandeweghe, who lost her first set to Richel Hogenkamp and broke a racket in frustration during the second before fighting back to a 4-6, 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 victory.
They were both cheered from the bench by Serena Williams, who was poised to make her own return on Sunday after a year
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away and the birth of her daughter Alexis Olympia.
WAWRINKA UPBEAT
Stan Wawrinka, on his way back after undergoing knee surgery last year, was in upbeat mood despite losing in the Sofia Open semi-finals on Saturday.
The Swiss player believes he needs more time to reach full fitness after going down 7-6(6) 6-4 to Bosnia’s Mirza Basic in his fifth competitive match in seven months.
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