WTA Championships 2013: Williams beats Radwanska in Istanbul

Serena Williams breezed past Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2 6-4 to take another step towards the semi-finals of the WTA Championships.

The American world No1 sealed an eighth successive win over her Polish opponent – and her second victory in the Red Group, with one more round-robin match to play, against Petra Kvitova.

“She definitely played pretty well but I can always look to improve on some things,” said Williams. “My serve wasn’t as good, but you can’t expect it to be great every day.”

In the White Group, Serbia’s Jelena Jankovic surprised second seed Victoria Azarenka 6-4 6-3 in her opening match, while China’s Li Na, also playing her first tie, beat Sara Errani 6-3 7-6 (7-5).

“I was so excited to qualify and give myself a chance to play against the best players in the world once again,” said former world No1 Jankovic, who is competing at the tournament for the first time.

“Beating Vika will give me a lot of confidence going into the next matches.”

WTA Championships order of play: 24 October 2013

1. Li Na vs. Jelena Jankovic
2. Agnieszka Radwanska vs. Angelique Kerber
3. Serena Williams vs. Petra Kvitova