Serena Williams cruises into 3rd round at Olympics

By STEVEN WINE – 4 hours ago

USA's Serena Williams reacts after defeating Olga Govortsova of Bulgaria at tennis at the Beijing 2008 Olympics in Beijing, Monday, Aug. 11, 2008. Williams defeated Govortsova 6-3, 6-1. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

 

BEIJING (AP) — Serena Williams raced into the third round at the Olympics, winning the final 10 games Tuesday to beat Samantha Stosur of Australia 6-2, 6-0 in 44 minutes.

Williams lost just five points in the second set and dropped only six points on her serve in the match.

Seeded fourth, Williams is playing singles in the Olympics for the first time. She won the gold medal with sister Venus in 2000 at Sydney.

Americans Mike and Bob Bryan won their first-round match in doubles, defeating Mark Knowles and Devin Mullings of the Bahamas 6-2, 6-1. The Bryan brothers are seeded No. 1.

With the temperature rising and the sun making its first appearance in the Beijing Games, the stands became a sea of fluttering Chinese fans — the hand-held kind — for Williams' morning match.

She was done before lunch. From 2-2, Williams won 40 of the final 49 points. She whacked service winners, overpowered Stosur from both wings on the baseline and came forward for an overhead slam that prompted an appreciative "Ooooh" from the crowd.

Williams punctuated her best shots with a fist pump. She made the gesture one last time after ripping a backhand return winner on match point, then shouted "C'mon!" as she trotted toward the net and into the round of 16.