After the top two seeds withdrew before playing a single match, Venus Williams made a strong if imperfect debut in San Jose by knocking off Heather Watson in three sets.
The No. 3 seed came through 6-4, 4-6, 6-0 in just shy of two hours. She fell behind an early break in each of the first two sets, but displayed her veteran prowess to fight back in the first and then found her best form in the final frame.
“It was a tough match. … There were times when I had no answers,” Williams said on-court. In the third set, “(I wanted) just to control the points and enjoy the battle.”
The seven-time grand slam champion did not hit many highlight shots in the third set — a run-around backhand down the line a notable exception — but instead missed virtually no ball. She systematically dismantled Watson, winning 11 of 16 first serve return points and forcing seven break points.
That fine form was occasionally on display in the early stages. On set point in the first, she paired a crosscourt backhand with one down the line to secure her lead, then dug out of an early second set hole with an ace up the T.
While Watson picked up her level late in the third set, it was the great American champion who eventually came through, aided in part by 24 winners.
No. 5 seed Mihaela Buzarnescu also won in three sets, defeating 16-year-old Amanda Anisimova 7-5, 2-6, 6-1. The American teenager struggled mightily on her serve — she won more points on Buzarnescu’s serve than on her own, though both were under 50 percent.
Buzarnescu rebounded strongly from a coaching visit after the second set that appeared to draw tears from the Romanian veteran, breaking Anisimova at love in the first game following and adding two more insurance breaks. That closely resembled the end of the first set, when Anisimova mashed several groundstrokes well beyond the baseline.
She suddenly ripped forehands in every direction to force a third set, but her good form quickly ran out.
That resembled Thursday’s surprise match, in which Ajla Tomljanovic knocked off lucky loser Magdalena Frech 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. Frech was added to the draw just minutes before the match after Madison Keys pulled out, citing a wrist injury.
Frech, No. 121 in the world, warmed after a slow start and thrashed winners, especially in the second set. However, she hit 51 unforced errors to her 21 winners, worse figures on both sides than for the victorious Australian. Also Thursday, Maria Sakkari destroyed No. 8 seed Timea Babos in a shocking 6-0, 6-1 victory after winning the first 11 games and holding match points for a so-called double bagel.
