American star tennis player Venus Williams defeated French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia 7-5, 6-7 (3-7), 7-5 in a White Group match at the BNP Paribas WTA Finals here.
The 37-year-old Williams needed three hours and 13 minutes on Tuesday to beat the 20-year-old Ostapenko, who is playing in her first WTA Finals, reports Efe.
"I don't know if there was any luck for me tonight -- I just had to work for every point," Williams said.
Both players struggled with their service games, with Williams overcoming 10 double-faults and Ostapenko 13.
On Thursday, Williams will play Spain's Garbiñe Muguruza, who lost on Tuesday 2-6, 2-6 to the Czech Republic's Karolina Pliskova, who is leading the White Group.
Williams (1-1) and Ostapenko (0-2) both remain alive in the White Group, but Williams has the easier road to the year-end tournament's knockout stage.
--IANS
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