Venus Williams marches into Miami Open quarters

Florida : American tennis star Venus Williams booked her place in the quarter-finals of the Miami Masters after battling past last year's winner Johanna Konta of Australia in a three-set thriller here on Tuesday.

After dropping a grueling first set, Venus bounced back strongly to register a 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 victory over her Australian opponent in a thrilling last-16 clash that lasted for more than two hours.

Reflecting on the match, the three-time Miami Open champion said that though Konta came up with some really good shots to break her in the opening set, she somehow managed to prevail her Australian opponent eventually.

"The first set was definitely all her, and she came up with some amazing shots to break me at 5-5.There was not much I could do there, except just hope I could keep up in the second and third sets," the WTA quoted Venus, as saying.

It was Venus' 64th Miami Open triumph, a run which dated back to her first appearance in the tournament in 1997. She has bagged the title thrice - in 1998, 1999 and 2001.

The former world number one will now face either Miami local Monica Puig or American qualifier Danielle Collins for a place in the semi-finals of the women's single event.

In another clash, Belarusian player Victoria Azarenka also made it to the last-eight after easing past Polish tennis star Agnieszka Radwanska 6-2, 6-2.

Azarenka will now take on fifth-seed Karolina Pliskova of Czech Republic in their quarter-final clash.