Venus Williams breezes into second round at Florida tennis 

Venus Williams, seeking to get back on the WTA Tour tasted an almost easy first-round win on Tuesday at the 600,000 WTA Amelia Island tournament. A victory in this tier two clay court event would help Venus Williams reclaim her spot as one of the top players on tour. 


A five-time Grand Slam champion, Williams ended a period of no wins for nearly two years with her victory at Memphis earlier this season. But Maria Sharapova beat her in the third round at Miami last month. The winner at Miami was Serena Williams, who also won the Australian Open and has rediscovered the form that makes her the most overwhelming player in the sport. 

In the draw as an unseeded player, the 2002 champion took a step toward that goal with a 6-1, 6-2 trouncing of Aravane Rezai of France. Next up for Williams is fourth-seeded Patty Schnyder of Switzerland, against whom she is 8-0 in her career.