U.S. OPEN champions Marin Cilic and Serena Williams defeated separate rivals to open their accounts in the China Open on Monday.
The Croatian Cilic, playing his first ATP tournament since winning a maiden grand slam at Flushing Meadows in early September, topped local wildcard Bai Yan 6-3, 6-4.
Bai, ranked 464th in the world, pushed the fourth seed for long periods on an empty stadium court but wasted four break point opportunities on the Cilic serve.
By contrast, Cilic capitalized on his unheralded opponent’s mistakes to secure a break in each set and advance into the second round.
Meanwhile, a sluggish start saw Williams trailing 0-5 and 40-15 down opposite Spanish qualifier Silvia Soler Espinosa. But the 18-time grand slam champion saved four set points to start her rally on her way to a 7-5, 6-2 victory.
It was the American’s first outing since retiring in the first set of her opening match against Alize Cornet at the Wuhan Open last week because of illness. Noli Cruz
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