Serena Williams, playing in what is likely the final tennis tournament of her storied career,
opened singles play with a 6-3, 6-3 victory over Danka Kovinić in the first round of the US Open at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Williams will open doubles play with her sister Venus on Wednesday
Williams will face world No. 2 Anett Kontaveit of Estonia in the singles round of 64, also on Wednesday
It will be their first career meeting.
After early struggles with her serve Monday evening, Williams took 10 of the final 13 games against Kovinić
a 27-year-old from Montenegro who is ranked 80th in the world.
After the match, during a ceremony celebrating her tennis career,
Williams said she got a boost from the vocal crowd of almost 24,000 people.
"The crowd was crazy," she said.
Williams double-faulted twice in the first game but eventually upped her first serve percentage to 66%. She won 33 of 43 first serve points.