Serena takes a bumpy route to second round

MANY of her challengers have already fallen, but Serena Williams’s tortured demeanour last night showed that she is no certainty to complete the calendar-year Grand Slam. The world No 1 was agonisingly tight as she squeezed through to the US Open second round, 7-6, 6-3 against the unfancied Kiki Bertens of Holland, fortunate not to have gone to three sets. Williams, who has seen the top seeds in her half scatter, trailed 4-2 in the first set and 4-0 in the tiebreak before nerves got the better of her opponent. It left the impression that the favourite could yet beat herself between now and a week on Saturday. There were shades of the French Open, where she loudly berated herself and kept falling behind before battling to the title that kept her on the road to becoming the fourth woman to win all four majors in the same season. Bertens, ranked 33, benefited from 10 double faults and 34 unforced errors, but as ever Williams found a way to win. ‘I’m usually relaxed here but today I was a bit tight and I hope I can get back to where I was before,’ said the champion.