Serena Williams eases into 3rd round of Rogers Cup in Toronto

Serena Williams cruises at Rogers Cup in Toronto

TORONTO — Serena Williams cruised past one of the Bondarenko sisters at the Rogers Cup.

Williams defeated Ukraine’s Alona Bondarenko 6-1, 6-4 Thursday to advance to the quarterfinals, two days after sister Venus Williams fell to Kateryna Bondarenko.

Serena Williams will face Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic next. The second-ranked Williams is the highest-seeded player left in the tournament after No. 1 Dinara Safina lost Wednesday.

At first, it looked like another easy day for Williams. After cruising through the first set, she appeared ready for the next round when Bondarenko found her swing in the second set.

But Williams took a breath, relaxed, and won three straight games to move on.

It was a minor hiccup in Williams’ quest for a second Rogers Cup title that she chalked up to a momentary loss in composure.

“I was just trying to be perfect and then I just couldn’t get my serve in and got frustrated,” Williams said. “You know, I’ve been practicing a lot on my serve, it just hasn’t been well, so I think in any case it can be frustrating.”

Earlier, Elena Dementieva rallied past Shahar Peer for a 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 victory. Dementieva will face Samantha Stosur, who swept Virginie Razzano 6-3, 6-1.

Aravane Rezai couldn’t repeat after her upset of Safina, falling 6-3, 6-4 to Alisa Kleybanova, and Safarova beat China’s Zheng Jie 7-6 (3), 6-4.

Williams has rarely been challenged at the Rexall Centre. She easily beat Yaroslava Shvedova on Wednesday and may not face a seeded player until the semifinals.

However, she knows she has to keep her cool if she’s going to make it that far.

“I get really emotional on the court,” she said. “Sometimes I’m really into the game too much, and I’ve just got to (remain calm). I can’t help myself when I do that, I think it’s just something natural and hopefully it helps me. I think towards the end I was able to relax and just calm down and then just try to stay positive more than anything.”

She admitted she was disappointed in Thursday’s performance after a strong start to the tournament.

“I thought that if I could keep up that form, I’m on my way into glory and today I didn’t play as well so hopefully I can get it back,” Williams said.

Williams needed just over an hour to beat Bondarenko, hitting three aces while committing three double faults. Williams, who will compete at the U.S. Open, said she is focused on winning the Rogers Cup for the first time since 2001.

“I’m just trying to play well,” she said. “There’s a huge gap so I’m just trying to do what I can and stay alive here. This is my first focus.”