Serena Williams heads to Paris with no pressure to defend her title

Serena Williams is putting no pressure on herself to retain her French Open title after belatedly starting her clay-court season by winning the Internazionali d’Italia for a fourth time on Sunday.

The world number one claimed her first tournament of the year by beating Madison Keys 7-6 (7-5) 6-3 in all-American final in Rome.

Williams, beaten in her two previous final appearances this year, has now claimed 70 WTA singles titles and boasts 20 successive wins at the event in the Eternal City either side of her withdrawal from last year’s tournament due to injury.

The 21-time grand-slam champion now turns her attention to winning a fourth Roland Garros crown, but the legendary 32-year-old will head to Paris in a relaxed frame of mind.

“I have tried to defend there once, twice, three times before. Didn’t quite work so well.” she said.

“But this year is different. I’m going to definitely go in there and I feel more calm and I don’t feel stress to, like, have to win.

“You know, I feel like I just am happy to be out here.”