Serena beats Kuznetsova

Serena saved two setpoints in the tie-breaker despite a sore right ankle and made the decisive break for 6-5 in the second before serving out the match at love.

It gives her a share of the lead in the Maroon Group with Elena Dementieva, who rallied from a set and a break down to beat defending champion Venus Williams 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-2.

The tournament features the top eight players in the world. The top two from each group advance to the semifinals.

Kuznetsova, the French Open champion, led 6-4 in the first tie-breaker but Serena erased the first set point with a return winner and the second with an ace — after a Hawkeye challenge to overturn the line judge’s call that the serve was out.

Serena had led 3-1 in the tie-breaker, and said she let her focus slip before closing it out. “I thought I had ruined it. I missed a chance to go up 4-1,” she said. After trading breaks early in the second, Kuznetsova had a game point on serve at 5-5 but double-faulted twice to give Serena a break opportunity, which the Wimbledon and Australian Open champion converted with a return winner.

The results:

Maroon Group: Elena Dementieva bt Venus Williams 3-6, 7-6(6), 6-2; Serena Williams bt Svetlana Kuznetsova 7-6(6), 7-5.

White Group: Victoria Azarenka bt Jelena Jankovic 6-2, 6-3. — AP