Serena Williams made a slow but successful start to her latest pursuit of a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title with a 7-6 (7/2), 6-0 win over Kristie Ahn in the French Open first round.
World number 102 Ahn served for the opening set at 5-4 but Williams forced a tie-break she dominated before charging through the second set to book a clash with Tsvetana Pironkova for a spot in the last 32 in a rematch of the US Open quarter-final. The Bulgarian beat Andrea Petkovic 6-3, 6-3.
Williams, playing at the French Open for the 18th time, dropped serve twice as Ahn moved 5-4 ahead in the opener in a rematch of their first-round encounter at Flushing Meadows. But the sixth seed forced a tie-break that she sealed with an ace after a 74-minute slog before charging to an ultimately comfortable victory.
The competition began Sunday amid steady drizzle in temperatures struggling to…