MELBOURNE (Australia): Veteran tennis star Venus Williams beat Arantxa Rus 6-1, 6-3 at Yarra Valley Classic on Sunday.
The 40-year-old American showed few signs of having spent 14 days in quarantine in her first-round romp, beating her Dutch opponent in 65 minutes.
The tournament is one of two WTA events being played concurrently at Melbourne Park as players prepare for the Australian Open Grand Slam starting on February 8.
Former Australian Open semifinalist Danielle Collins needed 75 minutes to secure her first victory of the year, a 6-3, 6-3 triumph over Belgian Ysaline Bonaventure in the same event.
Collins is back at the site of her best career major run, which saw her upset former champion Angelique Kerber en route to reaching the final four in 2019.
American Shelby Rogers also progressed, thanks to a 6-2, 7-5 win over No.12 seed Fiona Ferro, the first ranked player to fall, while Anastasija Sevastova proved too strong for Madison Brengle.
In a battle between former top five players, 2017 French Open champion Ostapenko triumphed over Sara Errani 4-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the first round of the Gippsland Trophy, charging back after losing the first set.
Former world No.4 Caroline Garcia of France also got her season on a positive note, ousting Australian wildcard Arina Rodionova, 6-3, 6-4.
