'Passive' Serena survives Open wake-up call

Top seed Serena Williams almost sleepwalked to an Australian Open upset on Thursday before finding her mojo and bulldozing Vera Zvonareva 7-5, 6-0 to make it to the third round.

The 33-year-old American, chasing her sixth title at Melbourne Park, berated herself for a "passive" early effort when she had to save two set points against the Russian.

Williams, whose world No 1 ranking will be under threat if she does not win the tournament, did not rouse herself until the ninth game, when she was on the brink of going down a set.