The one-hour, 39-minute match saw the 605th-ranked American break Kovinic five times to beat her 6-3, 6-3 in their first-ever meeting on the WTA tour. Williams saved eight break points and dished out nine aces, compared to just six from the World No. 80.
It has been three weeks since the 23-time Major champion announced her decision to retire from the sport, with the US Open likely being her last tournament. This meant a record attendance of 29,402 was seen on the opening night and the crowd roared the loudest as Williams made her way to the court.
Although the majority of fans enjoyed the match and hoped for Williams to go as deep as possible, there were a few who didn’t like the fact that a small ceremony was organized in the legend’s honor after the first match.
Here are a few more reactions:
Serena Williams to face Anett Kontaveit in 2022US Open 2R
Serena Williams will face her first big test in the second round of the US Open when she faces second seed Anett Kontaveit on Wednesday. The second-ranked Estonian beat Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian 6-3, 6-0 in her opening match.
After defeating Danka Kovinic, Williams admitted that none of the opponents were easy to beat and that Kontaveit would be even more difficult than the others.
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