Australian Open
Top seed Angelique Kerber has tough start to title defence
Veteran Venus Williams says she is not in Melbourne 'for kicks and giggles'
Melbourne — World No1 Angelique Kerber battled past Lesia Tsurenko on Monday to get her first Grand Slam title defence off to a stuttering start at the Australian Open Monday. The top seed ultimately proved too much for the Ukrainian, winning 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena, but the laboured victory was less than impressive from the German. Veteran campaigner Venus Williams, meanwhile, says she is not at the Australian Open for "kicks and giggles", after grinding past Ukrainian youngster Kateryna Kozlova in two gruelling sets Monday. The US seven-time Grand Slam winner, who turns 37 this year, showed she is still up for a fight after coming through an almost two-hour first round marathon 7-6 (7/5) 7-5 in stifling conditions. Williams, who played her first Australian Open in 1998 and turned professional in 1994, the year her opponent was born, said the desire to win was still burning. "Just like every player here, I have put in a ton of work. I’m not coming all the way to Australia ...
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