Dressed to dominate

NEW YORK — Dressed for a night on the town, Serena Williams was all business in her first match in 4 1/2 weeks.

Williams strode into Arthur Ashe Stadium wearing knee-high black boots, a pleated denim miniskirt, a studded black tank top and dangling earrings. A far cry from the tennis attire of days gone by, to be sure, but then again, Williams’ powerful strokes bear little resemblance to the way the women’s game used to be played.

Showing little sign of her injury-induced layoff, the two-time U.S. Open champion advanced to the second round with ease, overwhelming Sandra Kleinova of the Czech Republic 6-1, 6-3 Monday night.

“I performed at a decent level today. I’m finally getting to a point where I’m actually playing better and focusing better,” Williams said.

A few moments later, asked who her biggest threat in the tournament is, Williams replied: “Myself. I can make it or break it.”

She might have been dressed for a cocktail party or MTV’s Video Music Awards, which she attended last year while skipping the Open shortly after left knee surgery.

Her play Monday was definitely Grand Slam-caliber, though, a step above what fellow major champions Jennifer Capriati, Roger Federer and Carlos Moya showed in shaky victories earlier on Day 1. At night, 1999 Open runner-up Todd Martin lost the final match of his career, announcing his retirement after being beaten by No. 31 Fabrice Santoro 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.

Only one man in the draw is older than Martin, by a matter of months: Andre Agassi, 34, who followed Williams on center court and beat Robby Ginepri 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-2. Agassi is the last of his generation, now that Martin joined fellow Americans Pete Sampras, Michael Chang and Jim Courier in retirement.

“In some respects, you miss everyone you grew up with,” Agassi said. “You do.”

Williams said her choice of denim was inspired by Agassi, who wore shorts made of that material back in the early 1990s. That was when Agassi was Mr. “Image is Everything.” These days, he’s more “Father Knows Best,” playing a limited schedule now that he and wife Steffi Graf have two children.

“I managed to fight hard in a lot of those rallies and won the crucial points,” Agassi said.

There weren’t many crucial points for Williams, who finished with a remarkable 35-3 edge in winners and saved the only break point she faced with one of her seven aces.

“Her serving was pretty good. If she places it really well, like she did tonight, it’s hard to return — even for guys,” Kleinova said.

Williams said last week she’s at 90 to 95 percent, working her way back since pulling out of a tournament at Carlsbad, Calif., in late July because of soreness in her left knee. Williams also missed the Olympics, deciding not to go only hours before the U.S. tennis team’s flight to Greece.