Venus Williams beats Camila Giorgi in three-hour thriller at Birmingham Classic

Birmingham [UK], June 20 : Venus Williams battled to her first Top 50 win since 2019 in three sets against Camila Giorgi to reach the Birmingham Classic second round.

It took three hours and 17 minutes for Williams to register a 7-6(5), 4-6, 7-6(6) triumph against Giorgi.

Williams will next face either No.2 seed Jelena Ostapenko or 18-year-old Linda Noskova.

The 43-year-old Williams, who is presently ranked No. 697, was sidelined for six months due to a hamstring injury she suffered in Auckland during the first week of the year. She lost to Celine Naef, 17, of's-Hertogenbosch in the opening round upon her return last week.

"It was touch and go there, and I felt the support," Williams was quoted as saying by WTA.

"I thought I played really well today, and she played incredible," said Williams afterwards. "I'm so surprised she's not No.1 in the world. There were so many moments where I thought, 'This match is over,' then she would hit a shot from out of nowhere. She pushed me to be better than what I thought I could be, and it's great for me. I haven't played a lot of matches, and it's great to come through."

When Williams took a medical timeout with the score 3-2 in the first set and returned to the court with her right knee strapped, there were early concerns that her body would fail her once more.

"I got off to a great start, and my leg started hurting in the third game. I was like, 'Oh no, not this.' It was really hard to control my emotions, to be honest. Eventually I just acclimated to what I was going through and tried to ignore it. I couldn't move as well as I wanted, but I tried to get to every ball that I could," Williams explained.

Williams' intensity didn't waver during the frantic match, which saw the momentum swing back and forth. Giorgi gradually reduced Williams' early double-break advantage in the first set, necessitating a tiebreak that Williams won with a superb backhand pass.

The roles were switched in the second set. Williams made a comeback attempt after Giorgi smashed a backhand winner to gain a 4-1 lead after a double break. After a four-deuce struggle, the seven-time major winner recovered one of the breaks while serving at 3-5 and survived a set point to hold. Giorgi, though, ended Williams' chances of winning in straight sets by tying the score with three one-twos and a forehand winner.

Vintage serving from Williams saw her dominate the first half of the decider. But in the end, Williams had more control. She changed up her style of play in the final stretch with deft net play and strategic slice use, and made only one unforced error in the crucial tiebreak.