Sofia Kenin beats Venus Williams in US Open first round

American Sofia Kenin defeated 46-year-old compatriot Venus Williams 6-2, 7-6(6) in a US Open first-round match on Monday to setup second round tie against Jessica Pegula.

The match got underway at Arthur Ashe Stadium after Novak Djokovic's five-set loss to Mariano Navone, with a large number of fans having bought tickets to enjoy watching Williams one more time, who was competing as a wild card in her 96th career Grand Slam main draw appearance.

Kenin raced to a 3-0 lead after breaking serve in the first game and never trailed in the first set. Both players struggled to find their rhythm, attempting nine double faults together.

Venus Williams broke back to love to trim the deficit to 3-1 but dropped serve again as Kenin pulled away to close out the set.

Kenin again started strongly in the second set, winning three straight games to lead 3-1 in the second set and while Williams showed glimpses of the form, the seven-time Grand Slam winner struggled to string points together, with her second serve proving especially costly.

Kenin made a comeback to level at 5-5 after saving four break points, leaving Venus screaming in frustration following an unforced error which cost her a game. However, Williams still found a way to hold for 6-5 before Kenin forced a tiebreak.

Williams was looking good in the tiebreak but could not convert any of her seven set points, as Kenin kept her cool to close out the win.

Kenin, the 2020 Australian Open champion, will next take on American Pegula.