KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. — Serena Williams can claim another first, and another victory: She beat the traffic by riding a bicycle to her match.
With Key Biscayne’s main road in a snarl Saturday night, Williams borrowed a bike at her hotel, rode to her match and beat Ayumi Morita in the third round of the Sony Open, 6-3, 6-3.
Williams match was scheduled to start at 8 p.m., and she learned about the gridlock before leaving her hotel.
“The traffic was crazy and everyone was like, ‘I have been here for an hour, and I’m staying like eight minutes away,’” Williams said. “I’m like, ‘OK, I’m not going to make my match.’
“So I asked for a golf cart, and the hotel didn’t have a golf cart. Then they were like, ‘We have a motor bike.’ I’m like, ‘I don’t do motor bikes.’ They said, ‘We have a bicycle.’ I said, ‘I really don’t do bicycles, but I will today.’”
Traffic jams are common on Key Biscayne, where only one road connects the island with the mainland and Miami. But Williams had never resorted to a bicycle before.
“It was fun,” she said. “It was probably one of my best memories I think ever, riding a bike to a match. That’s pretty cool.”
Williams is ranked No. 1. She seeks her sixth Key Biscayne title and her first since 2008.
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