NEW YORK: Serena Williams’ quest for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam got off the mark as Andy Murray rolled back the years with a vintage comeback at the US Open on Tuesday.

Six-time winner Williams powered past 96th-ranked Kristie Ahn after Murray came from two sets down to win a five-set thriller in his first singles Grand Slam match in 18 months.

The pair both progressed to the second round on day two of a US Open that is unrecognizable from previous tournaments, without spectators and with stringent measures to prevent Covid-19 infections.

Williams defeated Ahn 7-5, 6-3 as she started the latest bid of her protracted pursuit to match Margaret Court’s Grand Slam title with a straight-sets win at Flushing Meadows.

The 38-year-old overcame the loss of her first service game in the opening set to advance at a virtually empty Arthur Ashe Stadium, where artwork by black artists is displayed in honor of the Black Lives Matter movement against racial injustice.

It has been more than three years since Williams won her 23rd Grand Slam title at the 2017 Australian Open — when she was already pregnant with daughter Olympia. She has come close since, reaching four major finals only to come away empty-handed, but should have a better chance this time around with several top players absent because of coronavirus concerns or injury.

World No.1 Ashleigh Barty, the second-ranked Simona Halep and Canadian Bianca Andreescu — who stunned Williams in last year’s final — are all absent from the behind-closed-doors tournament.

A title win for Williams would also see her become the most decorated women’s player at the US Open in the modern era. She is currently tied with Chris Evert on six.

Murray secured a stunning 4-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-4), 6-4 come-from-behind victory in a bruising 4 hr and 39 min encounter against Japan’s 49th-ranked Yoshihito Nishioka.

The Scotsman, who has barely played in 2020, said he had learnt a lot about his physical condition and the metal hip he received during surgery last year.

Tenth seed Garbine Muguruza, the 2016 French Open champion and 2017 Wimbledon winner, advanced to round two with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Japan’s Nao Havino.

She dedicated the win to compatriot Carla Suarez Navarro, who revealed on Tuesday that she had been diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma and will require six months of chemotherapy.

Also in the women’s draw, second seed American Sofia Kenin needed just over an hour to score a 6-2, 6-2 win over unseeded Belgian Yanina Wickmayer at Louis Armstrong Stadium.

And ninth seed Johanna Konta beat compatriot Heather Watson 7-6 (9-7), 6-1 in a tie dubbed the ‘Battle of Britain’.

There was disappointment for 40-year-old Venus Williams though who bowed out in the first round for the first time in her career, losing in straight sets to Karolina Muchova.

Another veteran, Belgium’s 37-year-old Kim Clijsters, also fell at the first hurdle.

Clijsters making a comeback for the second time in her career and playing in her first Grand Slam draw since 2012, was beaten in three sets by Ekaterina Alexan­drova, losing 3-6, 7-5, 6-1.

In the men’s competition, number two seed Dominic Thiem progressed to round two when opponent Jaume Munar retired after the second set at Louis Armstrong Stadium. Munar abandoned before the start of the third set, with Austria’s Thiem leading 7-6 (8-6), 6-3.

Thiem now faces India’s Sumit Nagal, who became the first Indian man since 2013 to the reach the second round of a Grand Slam event with a 6-1, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 win over Bradley Klahn of the United States.

Collated results on Tuesday (prefix number denotes seeding):

Men’s singles:

First round: 6-Matteo Berrettini (Italy) bt Go Soeda (Japan) 7-6 (7-5), 6-1, 6-4; Ugo Humbert (France) bt Yuichi Sugita (Japan) 6-3, 6-4, 6-3; Emil Ruusuvuori (Finland) bt Aljaz Bedene (Slovenia) 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, 4-6, 6-1; 30-Casper Ruud (Norway) bt Mackenzie McDonald (US) 4-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-2; Ernesto Escobedo (US) bt Kamil Majchrzak (Poland) 7-6 (7-3), 6-2, 6-3; Salvatore Caruso (Italy) bt James Duckworth (Australia) 4-6, 7-5, 7-5, 6-2; Gregoire Barrere (France) bt Taro Daniel (Japan) 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1; 10-Andrey Rublev (Russia) bt Jeremy Chardy (France) 6-4, 6-4, 6-3; 14-Grigor Dimitrov (Bulgaria) bt Tommy Paul (US) 6-4, 6-3, 6-1; Marton Fucsovics (Hungary) bt Hugo Dellien (Bolivia) 6-3, 6-3, 6-1; Frances Tiafoe (US) bt Andreas Seppi (Italy) 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-5; John Millman (Australia) bt 22-Nikoloz Basilashvili (Georgia) 6-1, 6-4, 6-4; Jeffrey Wolf (US) bt 29-Guido Pella (Argentina) 6-2, 0-6, 6-3, 6-3; Roberto Carballes (Spain) bt Feliciano Lopez (Spain) 3-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, 6-3; Christopher O’Connell (Australia) bt Laslo Djere (Serbia) 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4; 3-Daniil Medvedev (Russia) bt Federico Del Bonis (Argentina) 6-1, 6-2, 6-4; 8-Roberto Bautista (Spain) bt Tennys Sandgren (US) 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3); Miomir Kecmanovic (Serbia) bt Gianluca Mager (Italy) 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (6-8), 3-6, 6-2; Vasek Pospisil (Canada) bt Philipp Kohlschreiber (Germany) 7-6 (7-4), 7-5, 7-6 (7-3); 25-Milos Raonic (Canada) bt Leonardo Mayer (Argentina) 6-3, 6-2, 6-3; 21-Alex De Minaur (Australia) bt Andrej Martin (Slovakia) 6-4, 6-3, 7-5; Richard Gasquet (France) bt Ivo Karlovic (Croatia) 7-6 (7-0), 7-6 (7-4), 6-1; Andrey Kuznetsov (Russia) bt Sam Querrey (US) 6-4, 7-6 (8-6), 6-2; 11-Karen Khachanov (Russia) bt Jannik Sinner (Italy) 3-6, 6-7 (7-9), 6-2, 6-0, 7-6 (7-4); 15-Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada) bt Thiago Monteiro (Brazil) 6-3, 6-7 (7-9), 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (8-6); Andy Murray (Scotland) bt Yoshihito Nishioka (Japan) 4-6, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-4), 6-4; Corentin Moutet (France) bt Jiri Vesely (Czech Republic) 6-4, 6-4, 7-5; 23-Daniel Evans (Great Britain) bt Thiago Wild (Brazil) 6-2, 6-1, 7-6 (7-5); 31-Marin Cilic (Croatia) bt Denis Kudla (US) 6-7 (3-7), 3-6, 7-5, 7-5, 6-3; Norbert Gombos (Slovakia) bt Radu Albot (Moldova) 6-4, 6-1, 6-4; Sumit Nagal (India) bt Bradley Klahn (US) 6-1, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1; 2-Dominic Thiem (Austria) bt Jaume Munar (Spain) 7-6 (8-6), 6-3, 0-0 — Munar retired.

Women’s singles:

First round: 7-Madison Keys (US) bt Timea Babos (Hungary) 6-1, 6-1; Aliona Bolsova (Spain) bt Jil Teichmann (SUI) 7-6 (7-3), 6-2; Alize Cornet (France) bt Lauren Davis (US) 6-3, 1-6, 6-0; Ysaline Bonaventure (Belgium) bt 25-Zhang Shuai (China) 4-6, 6-3, 6-2; 18-Donna Vekic (Croatia) bt Kristyna Pliskova (Czech Republic) 3-6, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4; Patricia Tig (Romania) bt Kurumi Nara (Japan) 6-1, 6-0; Tsvetana Pironkova (Bulgaria) bt Liudmila Samsonova (Russia) 6-2, 6-3; 10-Garbine Muguruza (Spain) bt Nao Hibino (Japan) 6-4, 6-4; 15-Maria Sakkari (Greece) bt Stefanie Voegele (Switzerland) 6-3, 3-6, 7-5; Bernarda Pera (US) bt Zarina Diyas (Kazakhstan) 7-6 (7-4), 6-0; Katrina Scott (US) bt Natalia Vikhlyantseva (Russia) 7-6 (7-3), 6-2; 22-Amanda Anisimova (US) bt Viktoriya Tomova (Bulgaria) 7-5, 7-5; 26-Sloane Stephens (US) bt Mihaela Buzarnescu (Romania) 6-3, 6-3; Olga Govortsova (Belarus) bt Asia Muhammed (US) 6-1, 6-2; Margarita Gasparyan (Russia) bt Monica Puig (Puerto Rico) 6-3, 6-7 (0-7), 6-0; 3-Serena Williams (US) bt Kristie Ahn (US) 7-5, 6-3; 5-Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) bt Oceane Dodin (France) 7-6 (7-1), 6-4; Victoria Azarenka (Belarus) bt Barbara Haas (Austria) 6-1, 6-2; Sachia Vickery (US) bt Taylor Townsend (US) 6-2, 6-4; Iga Swiatek (Poland) bt 29-Veronika Kudermetova (Russia) 6-3, 6-3; 20-Karolina Muchova (Czech Republic) bt Venus Williams (US) 6-3, 7-5; Anna Kalinskaya (Russia) bt Nina Stojanovic (Serbia) 6-4, 6-3; Sorana Cirstea (Romania) bt Christina McHale (US) 6-4, 7-5; 9-Johanna Konta (Great Britain) bt Heather Watson (Great Britain) 7-6 (9-7), 6-1; 16-Elise Mertens (Belgium) bt Laura Siegemund (Germany) 6-2, 6-2; Sara Sorribes (Spain) bt Claire Liu (US) 6-2, 6-4; Caty McNally (US) bt Viktria Kuzmova (Slovakia) 6-4, 6-1; 21-Ekaterina Alexandrova (Russia) bt Kim Clijsters (Belgium) 3-6, 7-5, 6-1; 27-Ons Jabeur (Tunisia) bt Katarzyna Kawa (Poland) 6-2, 7-6 (8-6); Kaia Kanepi (Estonia) bt Katerina Siniakova (Czech Republic) 6-1, 6-2; Leylah Fernandez (Canada) bt Vera Zvonareva (Russia) 6-4, 7-5; 2-Sofia Kenin (US) bt Yanina Wickmayer (Belgium) 6-2, 6-2.

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2020