WASHINGTON — Canada’s Rebecca Marino rallied from a 4-1 deficit in the third set to upset Venus Williams in her opener at the Citi Open. Marino edged Williams in three sets 4-6, 6-1, 6-4.
Williams was playing her first singles match in nearly a year, having not played since August 23, 2021.
Marino secured his ticket to the tournament on Sunday with a win over Sachia Vickery in his final qualifying match.
Marino was responding well to the attacks of the American in the first set, until she conceded the first break of the match to him in the 7e game Williams took the opportunity to slip away with the set at 6-4.
The Canadian quickly came to her senses and was quick in the second set to force a final set. Marino had two breaks en route to a 6-1 run that allowed him to force a third set.
Then in the final set, Marino quickly trailed 4-1 when Williams recorded a break in serve. With her combativeness, however, Marino managed to win the next five points, including two thanks to breaks of service, to win.
In the next round, Marino will face the winner of the duel between Andrea Petkovic and Clara Tauson.
Halep triomphe
Simona Halep won her first match at the Citi Open.
Third-seeded Halep defeated Spain’s Cristina Bucsa 6-3, 7-5.
Former queen of the WTA, Halep now sits 16th in the world.
In the American duel, defending champion Jessica Pegula also advanced on the board, winning 6-2 and 6-2 against Hailey Baptiste.
Briton Andy Murray lost 7-6, 4-6 and 6-1 against Sweden’s Mikael Ymer.
Murray eliminated in the 1st round in Washington
