Serena swats doubts aside, dark horse Konta through

Two matches in four months, a dodgy knee and a sweltering day had doubts swirling around Serena Williams as she took centre court for her first round match against talented Swiss Belinda Bencic at the Australian Open on Tuesday.

It took 79 minutes for the 35-year-old American to bat them all away, however, an emphatic 6-4 6-3 win on Rod Laver Arena providing a near-perfect launch of her bid to clinch a record 23rd grand slam title in the professional era.

Fiance Alexis Ohanian, a social media entrepreneur, was a spectator in the crowd but the wedding plans remain on hold for at least another match, and much longer if the American great has her way at Melbourne Park.

“I just kept saying that February I’ll start looking at the bigger picture of my life,” Williams, seeded second, told reporters. “But right now I’m just so focused that this is kind of all I can think about.”

Former world number seven Bencic, who is expected to have a big future in the game, was supposed to give her opponent something to think about.

She had upset Williams in Toronto in 2015 and became the youngest player to do so in a completed match since a 17-year-old Maria Sharapova felled her at the 2004 WTA Finals.

Elsewhere, Britain’s growing hopes of a first women’s grand slam champion in 40 years moved a step closer when ninth seed Johanna Konta took out Kirsten Flipkins 7-5 6-2 in the blazing sun.

Konta came through the tricky opening-round encounter in reasonable shape after an hour and a half, with two breaks in the opening set and another couple in the second helping to keep her time on court to a minimum.

Belgian Flipkens, who turned 31 last week, did not give her an easy ride, however, mixing it up with a smorgasbord of shots to give the 25-year-old a proper workout under the open roof on Margaret Court Arena.

“She made it difficult for me out there,” Konta told reporters.

“She’s got this great ability at really frustrating her opponents with some of the balls she’s able to hit. She’s very creative in that way, so I think I was really happy I was able to work myself into the match and to come through.”

Australian-born Konta has had a fairytale last 12 months, soaring to world number nine after a surprise charge into the semis in Melbourne last year.

Last week, she won a warm-up tournament in Sydney to bag a trophy from the city of her birth, fuelling hopes that she could bring Britain to its women’s glory since Virginia Wade’s 1977 Wimbledon triumph.

Konta has attempted to downplay expectations but showed few signs of nerves as she brought up match point with an uncompromising smash at the net before sealing victory when Flipkens went long with a return.