Veteran Selena Halep advances to Toronto

Three-time Canadian Open champion Serena Williams beats Spain’s Nuria Palisas Diaz 6-3, 6-4 to advance to second round in Toronto, alongside Jelena Rybakina and Simona Halep won and advanced.

In just his second singles match since returning to action in June, Williams was forced to dig deep in a nearly two-hour match played in hot and humid conditions on Monday.

Williams, one of the 14 main winners in the event’s main draw in preparation for the US Open, closed the opener with a set point in the fourth with a vintage smash that Parisas Diaz had no chance of returning. .

A tighter second set saw Williams hold his serve well and use his power to fend off four break points in a physically demanding 18-minute game to level at 4-4.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion broke her opponent after Parisas Diaz threw a backhand wide and continued the match for her first singles victory since the 2021 French Open.

The 40-year-old will either be Olympic champion Belinda Bencic, the 12th seed, or Czech Teresa Martincova.

Halep, the 15th seed, withdrew from the second round in Washington last week due to illness. She beat Croatia’s Donna Vekic 6-0, 6-2 in just 61 minutes.

Halep survived the first set in 21 minutes and never looked back as Vekic’s frustration grew as the match progressed.

“It’s not about the result, it’s about how you played,” said Halep, who didn’t face a break point, in an on-court interview.

“I’ve been very aggressive and played fast, so that’s my goal and I try to do that every day.”

Halep, who won two Canadian titles at the event in Montreal in 2016 and 2018, is waiting in Round 2 for either China’s Zhang Shuai or Spain’s qualifier Cristina Busca.

Ryvakina, who followed her Wimbledon win with a first-round exit in San Jose last week, beat Czech Marie Bouzkova 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 6-1 for her first Grand Slam title. I got

Kazakhstan is next up against America’s No. 10 seed Coco Gauff or Madison Brengle, while 2017 French Open winner and No. 16 seed Jelena Ostapenko faces Petra Kvitova or Alison Riske Amritraj in Latvia’s round of 32. To do. She beat Ukraine’s Angelina Kalinina 6-4, 6-2.

Canada’s No. 13 seed Leila Fernandez will begin her opening night session with Australia’s Storm Sanders before Venus Williams takes on Switzerland’s Jill Teichmann.