3-time champion Venus avoids first-round upset

Amelie Mauresmo and Maria Sharapova won easily.

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Three-time champion Venus Williams came back from a break down in the last two sets to avoid a major first-round surprise Tuesday against a Russian teenager playing her first match at Wimbledon.

Williams appeared on the brink of defeat, but came up with big first serves and baseline winners on crucial points to overcome Alla Kudryavtseva 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 in nearly two hours on Court 2 — known as the “Graveyard of Champions” for its history of upsets.

Williams was two points from defeat while serving at 5-4 down, 30-30, in the final set.

But the Russian missed a backhand, and Williams smacked a 192 kph (119 mph) service winner to hold. Williams then broke in the next game and served out the match at love.

“I enjoy the battle,” Williams said. “I enjoy winning matches like this. This is what I do. If you want to be successful at anything, it doesn’t come easy.”

Easier day at the office

Two other Wimbledon women’s champions had a much easier time in reaching the second round. Defending champion Amelie Mauresmo beat Jamea Jackson of the United States 6-1, 6-3, while 2004 winner Maria Sharapova downed Chan Yung-jan of Taiwan 6-1, 7-5.

In men’s play, second-seeded Rafael Nadal and former champion Lleyton Hewitt were among the winners.

For a while, it looked like Williams would go out in the opening round for the first time since her Wimbledon debut in 1997. Since then, she won the title in 2000, ’01 and ’05, and finished runner-up twice to her sister, Serena, in 2002 and 2003.

Serena, seated courtside with their mother, Oracene Price, called out encouragement and advice throughout the match.

“It’s so important to have that support,” Venus Williams said. “It was definitely key today for my win.”

Pushed to the limit

The 19-year-old Kudryavtseva, who was born in Moscow but lives in Miami, is ranked No. 59. She reached the second round at the Australian Open and the third round at Roland Garros this year, and pushed Williams to the limit with a tenacious game and fighting spirit.

After losing the first set in a flood of errors, Williams fell behind 2-0 in the second. But she won six of the next seven games to send the match into a third set.

The Russian went up 3-1, but Williams broke back for 3-2 and registered the decisive break in the 11th game.

The set featured long rallies, tight games and several disputed line calls. At various times, Kudryavtseva slammed her racket on the turf and against the back fence, smacked a ball in anger and complained to the chair umpire. She was in tears as she walked off the court.

Men

Nadal, coming off his third straight French Open title on clay, looked sharp in his return to the Centre Court grass, beating Mardy Fish 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-3. Nadal produced an ace down the middle on match point.

The Spaniard had 40 winners to 15 errors, broke Fish twice and saved the only two break points he faced. Nadal, who lost to Roger Federer in last year’s final, is aiming to become the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1978-80 to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year.

Hewitt, the only champion in the men’s field other than four-time winner Federer, beat British wild card Richard Bloomfield 7-5, 6-3, 7-5.

Third-seeded Jelena Jankovic, No. 5 Svetlana Kuznetsova and No. 8 Anna Chakvetadze were among the women who reached the second round.

In men’s play, No. 4 Novak Djokovic defeated Potito Starace of Italy 6-0, 6-3, 6-4 and No. 9 James Blake beat Igor Andreev 6-3, 6-4, 6-4. Other winners included No. 13 Richard Gasquet, No. 15 Ivan Ljubicic and No. 26 Marat Safin.