MADRID, Spain — Top-ranked Serena Williams beat Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 7-6 (5), 6-1 to advance to the second round of the Madrid Open on Sunday.
Putintseva broke Williams' serve early to open up a 3-1 lead in the first set. But the defending champion settled down after breaking serve and, once through the tiebreaker, dominated the second set.
"I felt a little sluggish out there, but I'm happy I was able to win the match," Williams said. "Honestly, I obviously have to and want to play better as each match goes on."
She next faces Lourdes Dominguez-Lino of Spain.
Williams said she liked the new red clay courts the tournament had installed at the Caja Magica after last year's failed experiment with blue "smurf" clay.
"I think these clay courts are really good," she said. "I think they're a little bit faster than the ones I was practicing on in Paris. For me, that's always a good sign."
Also in the first round, formerly top-ranked Caroline Wozniacki was ousted by 35th-ranked Yaroslava Shvedova of Kazakhstan 6-3, 6-4.
Shvedova overcame nine double faults by converting five of 15 break chances to oust the 10th-seeded Wozniacki.
Serena's sister Venus withdrew early Sunday morning before her first-round match due to back problems.
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