By Richard Pagliaro | Monday, March 11, 2019
Venus Williams rolled through the final four games to wrap a 6-2, 7-5 win over Christina McHale and charge into the Indian Wells round of 16 for the sixth time.
Photo credit: @BNP Paribas Open
Palm Springs has a rich history as a retirement community to the stars.
Venus Williams continues to turn the place into a revival ground.
More: Serena Williams Retires from Indian Wells
Christina McHale served for the second set at 5-4, but Williams was in no mood for extended play on a chilly day.
Williams rolled through the final four games to wrap a 6-2, 7-5 win over McHale and charge into the Indian Wells round of 16 for the sixth time.
"Probably experience (was the key)," Williams told Andrew Krasny afterward. "I have just a little bit more experience than she did. She had a lot of opportunities, but you know I had to wait for mine.
"There were a few shots where the ball rolled over the net and I'm like 'Oh my God why?' But sometimes it doesn't go your way and all you can do is try to not think about it."
Though she's only hit two aces in three three-set wins this week, Williams moved fluidly and struck cleanly at crunch time today. She hasn't brought pure heat on first serve too often this week, but has compete with grit and guile dispatching three tough opponents.
"I don't really play that often, so when I do, I need to play well," Williams said. "You can't have too many misses. So I think it's extra motivation for me to play just a little bit better out there."
The 2018 semifinalist will play Mona Barthel for a trip to her sixth BNP Paribas Open quarterfinal.
In an all-German match, Barthel hit seven aces and nine double faults beating Julia Goerges, 7-5, 1-6, 6-4.
The 97th-ranked Barthel scored her third straight three-set victory following her 3-6, 6-1, 7-5 decision over 17th-seeded American Madison Keys.
"I have played her a few times," Williams said of Barthel. "Not recently, but it's definitely a different match. I feel definitely more comfortable going into that match than, for example, today.
"I had never played her before, so you feel like... you don't really know what's going to happen. At least tomorrow I'll walk out on the court knowing what to expect, having played her, and then adjust as the match goes on."
Following her dramatic 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 second-round over two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova, Venus declared "I just love the battle."
She showed spirited appetite for the fight denying seven of nine break points today.
Qualifer McHale broke to open and was up 2-0 when Williams raced through six of the last seven games to seize the opening set.
The four-time Olympic gold medalist was on serve in the second when McHale made a move.
Showing a brilliant burst, McHale sprinted sideline-to-sideline flicking a running forehand down the line that handcuffed the seven-time Grand Slam champion. When Williams netted a backhand McHale broke for 4-3.
Digging through a deuce game, McHale did a good job getting her body behind the ball in driving an 80 MPH backhand winner down the line to back up the break.
Serving for the set at 5-4, McHale opened with a double fault then watched Williams absolutely wallop a forehand winner into the corner for triple break point.
That superb shot had immediate repercussions as the 38-year-old Williams broke back to level.
Shot selection helped Williams complete her second-set comeback. Staring down a break point in the 11th game, Williams curled a bold slider serve down the middle to save it working through a challenging hold for 6-5.
The world No. 36 scored her second straight break to close a one hour, 25-minute victory on McHale's sixth double fault into net. Williams didn't stick around long to revel in reaching the round of 16, instead she headed out to the practice court to work on her game.