Having barely survived Ashleigh Barty two days earlier, Serena Williams was in full flight against Julia Goerges in the third round of the French Open on Saturday, moving through to the second week of the clay-court major with an impressive 6-3, 6-4 victory over the in-form German.
Her reward? A blockbuster round-of-16 clash against a fellow WTA legend, Maria Sharapova.
Many were unsure what to expect as Serena stepped on court for her third-round match against Goerges—she had to come back from a set and a break down to beat the No. 17-ranked Barty in the second round, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, and the big-serving Goerges had one of the best last 12 months on the tour, winning 51-of-71 matches since last year’s French Open and soaring from No. 51 to No. 11.
But in the second half of her match with Barty it was clear Serena was starting to find her range again, and apparently by the time she took the court with Goerges, she had found a lot more of it.
Match point from Serena's win over Goerges in the third round at Roland Garros: