Williams, four weeks shy of her 41st birthday, has now won 107 matches in New York, with 102 of them taking place at Arthur Ashe Stadium and nearly half of them at night.
Following the win, Billie Jean King came out onto the court to pay tribute to the 23-time Major winner, who announced last month that she would be retiring from the sport following the conclusion of the US Open.
The 78-year-old former World No. 1, who said she was clad in pink as it was Williams’ favorite color, recalled her first memory of meeting Williams.
King then praised Serena Williams for all her achievements, both on and off the court.
Serena Williams faces Anett Kontaveit in 2022 US Open 2nd round
Following her win over Danka Kovinic, Serena Williams set up an exciting clash with second seed and World No. 2 Anett Kontaveit on Wednesday. Kontaveit won her opening-round clash against Jaqueline Cristian 6-3, 6-0 to progress to the second round.
If Williams gets past the Estonian, she will face either Ajla Tomljanovic or Evgeniya Rodina in the third round, with a possible fourth-round clash with last year’s runner-up Leylah Fernandez coming right after.
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