But she was made to scrap for it all the way, especially in a first set which saw Marino regularly out-hit the two-time former champion. Venus had trouble with her serve action as the hot morning conditions on the Arthur Ashe Centre Court were joined by gusting winds in the afternoon.
Marino, behind a big serve and forehand, stayed with Venus to 3-3 in the tie-breaker, before the sole US seed this year ran off four points in a row to move ahead. The American won three games in a row to move 4-1 up in the second set and then served out to advance into the third round.
“It was challenging, not just with the conditions, but also my opponent,” said Venus. “She served so well and mixes up her shots. It seemed like every time I had an opening she came up with a big serve, so I guess I know what it’s like now playing myself.”
Roddick ousted in second round
US ninth seed Andy Roddick made a shocking second-round exit with Serbia’s 44th-ranked Janko Tipsarevic firing 66 winners in a 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) victory. Roddick, whose lone Grand Slam title at the 2003 US Open was the most recent Slam crown won by an American, suffered his only worse Flushing Meadows finish with a first-round exit in 2005.
Tipsarevic smacked 66 winners, hit 59 per cent of his first serves and won 81 per cent of his first-serve points to send off Roddick.
Clijsters advances
Defending champion Kim Clijsters also reached the third round by defeating Sally Peers of Australia 6-3, 6-1. It was a routine victory for Clijsters against the promising 19-year-old from Melbourne, who came through qualifying to gain entry to her first Grand Slam tournament.
The defending champion jumped out into a 2-0 lead, but some poor serving allowed Peers to break back in the third game. Another exchange of breaks saw Clijsters leading 3-2, but the 27-year-old two-time former champion broke for the third consecutive time and then held to take command of the set, which she sealed in 32 minutes. Clijsters moved into cruise control, running away with the second set for the loss of just one game.
Meanwhile, Ana Ivanovic, who is unseeded for New York, gave the clearest indication yet that she is getting back to top form with a blistering 6-3, 6-0 win over Zheng Jie.
Murray sizzles in the heat
Britain’s Andy Murray blazed into the second round after beating 71st-ranked Lukas Lacko 6-3, 6-2, 6-2. Murray hit eight aces and 27 winners and took only one hour and 51 minutes in advancing to a second-round match with Jamaican Dustin Brown, who ousted Spain’s Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo 6-4, 7-6 (8/6), 7-5.
But Wimbledon runner-up Tomas Berdych was humbled by France’s 35th-ranked Michael Llodra 7-6 (7/3), 6-4, 6-4.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 3rd, 2010.
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“The players would definitely not have felt good about this investigation while playing which is the reason why they have been omitted.”
PATIENCE
Former PCB chairman Tauqir Zia
“I think the PCB should have waited for the police inquiry to be completed before taking this decision of dropping the players.”
Published in The Express Tribune, September 3rd, 2010.
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