Serena Williams, of the United States, returns a shot to Margarita Gasparyan, of Russia, during the third round of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Sept 3, 2020, in New York. (FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP)

NEW YORK - Serena Williams battled her way through to a 6-2 6-4 victory over Russia’s Margarita Gasparyan in the second round of the US Open on Thursday, as she continued her bid for a record-equaling 24th Grand Slam title.

Momentum shifted during the second set as Gasparyan cleaned up her act and the six-time champion committed four double faults

A dominant Williams sailed through the first set, closing out the first game with one of seven aces on the match, and then breaking her unseeded opponent’s serve on the second game to take an early 2-0 lead.

Momentum shifted during the second set as Gasparyan cleaned up her act and the six-time champion committed four double faults. Williams clawed her way back, managing to close out a marathon 16-point game to hold her serve, psyching herself up shouting “Come on!” inside the empty stadium.

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“It wasn’t that frustrating,” Williams said after the match.

The second-set setback “could help me know what not to do next time.”

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