Serena Williams advances at China Open

Defending champion Serena Williams has eased into the third round of the China Open with a straight-sets victory over qualifier Tsvetana Pironkova.

The world number one opened up a 3-0 lead early in the opening set before Pironkova broke back to make it 3-3. However, Williams dominated after that as two more breaks saw her close it out 6-2.

Williams had to save three break points at the start of the second, though she was able to recover before sealing her progress 6-2 6-3.

The 18-time Grand Slam champion will now face Czech 13th seed Lucie Safarova for a spot in the quarter-finals.