Serena Williams said a deep love of tennis kept her motivated in pursuit of a 24th Grand Slam title as she overcame an error-strewn start Friday to move into the Australian Open fourth round.
The 39-year-old had 31 unforced errors but wore down Russian Anastasia Potapova 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 in 97 minutes on Rod Laver Arena to set up a clash with seventh seed Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus.
“I think if I didn’t love it, I wouldn’t be sitting here. I wouldn’t be in Australia if I didn’t love what I do,” she said when asked how she kept her focus after so many years, having made her Australian Open debut in 1998.
“I think that love is one of the single greatest things in the world that …
Keep on reading: Serena still ‘in love’ with tennis as 24th Slam title beckons