World number one Serena Williams has booked her place in the third round of the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells with a straight-sets victory over Monica Niculescu.
The first set was a tight affair as the Romanian managed to battle with the 19-time Grand Slam winner, matching her opponent stroke for stroke until Williams finally got the break just before a potential tie-breaker to take the set 7-5.
The 27-year-old battled hard again in the second set, but the quality of Williams came through as she dominated on her first serve to edge herself towards a winning position, before earning a crucial break to clinch the match in just over two hours.
Williams will now play number 28 seed Zarina Diyas in the third round of the competition.
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