Venus scores first ever win in Toronto

Published by Matt Trollope

Venus Williams, who fell in the first round in Toronto in 1995, 1997, 2009, 2013 and 2015, finally won a match in the Canadian city in 2017 at the Rogers Cup; Getty Images
In her fifth visit to Toronto, Venus Williams finally scored a win after beating Irina-Camelia Begu in three sets in the first round of the Rogers Cup.

Venus Williams held off Irina-Camelia Begu in a rain-delayed match to score a long-awaited first win in Toronto.

Williams advanced to the second round of the Rogers Cup with a 6-1 3-6 6-3 win over the Romanian, her first victory in five visits to the tournament.

The seven-time major champion fell at the first hurdle in Toronto in 1995, 1997, 2009, 2013 and 2015 – but finally broke the duck this year.

RELATED: Ostapenko stunned in first round

On even-numbered years, the Rogers Cup is held in Montreal; there in 2014, Williams advanced to the final.

Next up for the No.9 seed is Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic, who beat Mariana Duque-Marino in three sets.

“I’ve had to wait more than 20 years to win a match here, so it was really sweet,” Williams said.

“I played an opponent who was warm and played a lot of matches in qualifying, so all credit to her for taking it to a third set. I hit a lot of balls, so it’ll give me the opportunity to think about what I can do better.

“We never played before, so I really didn’t know what to expect. The first set I was playing great, the second set I missed some and then there was the rain, so the match was very up and down. She really knows how to compete and how to get into the match, even if it was a 6-1 (first) set.

“I’m hoping to play a more streamlined match next round. I want to win all my matches straightforward – never lose serve and hit big winners. I will say that the wins I really remember are the tough ones.”

Share this: 
  • Most popular articles

14 August 2017

Sharapova quotes Serena: “I will never lose to that li...

Maria Sharapova has opened up in her memoir Unstoppable, revealing her take on how Serena ... More

22 August 2017

Putintseva’s epic coaching bust-up

Finally! After years of watching coaches wander on to court and say nothing particularly i... More

6 September 2017

Andrey Rublev was in a One Direction cover band

Yes, you read that right. Tomorrow, Andrey Rublev is going to walk out on court to play th... More

14 July 2016

What if they weren’t tennis players…?

For Novak Djokovic it came down to three courts being built near his parents’ pizzeria; ... More