Williams wins tough test against Stephens

Twelve aces made up for slow start

NEW YORK — In danger of her earliest exit at the U.S. Open since her debut 22 years ago, Serena Williams turned things around and took over against Sloane Stephens.

Williams emerged from the third-round matchup between two Americans who are past champions at Flushing Meadows — she’s won six of her 23 Grand Slam singles titles at the place — with a 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 victory over 2017 titlist Stephens on Saturday.

Afterward, Williams’ 3-year-old daughter, Olympia, wore a mask and waved at Mom while sitting on her father’s lap in a front-row seat. On her way to the locker room, Williams waved back.

“I hope,” Williams said, “that she saw her mama fighting.”

Williams did it, as she so often does, with her best-inthe-game serve, hitting 12 aces at up to 122 mph as it got really dialed in midway through the second set, and an ability to recalibrate her groundstrokes that were so awry early and so superb down the stretch.

“She served a lot better,” said Stephens, now 1-6 against Williams, although they hadn’t played each other since 2015. “Obviously, she has one of the greatest serves in the game. It’s really difficult to read.”

On the men’s side, Frances Tiafoe beat Marton Fucsovics of Hungary 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 to become the only American man to reach the second week of the tournament.

Ranked 82nd, Tiafoe advanced to the fourth round, his best showing at the Open.

“I knew this was big to get to the second week,” Tiafoe said. “I really wanted to keep this run going.”