Highlights from Serena Williams’s first-round U.S. Open win over Danka Kovinic

Serena Williams leads 2-0 after a spot of trouble in the first game of the set. She double faulted twice, falling into a 15-40 hole, then served a pair of aces to get out of trouble. Nice to have the best serve in the history of the game to bail you out.

She broke Danka Kovinic’s serve in the second game, letting Kovinic know she’s still got some of her quickness by charging to net. So far, Williams is moving much better than she did in the warm-up tournaments she played ahead of the U.S. Open.

The diamonds weren’t limited to Serena Williams’ dress — Williams has diamonds in her hair and walked on court with a sparkly cape-slash-train while Kanye West’s “Diamonds From Sierra Leone” blasted in Arthur Ashe Stadium. The applause was deafening.

Serena Williams first popped up with squares of black tape on her face at Wimbledon this year. The small patches — sections of the type of tape usually seen stripped across athletes’ shoulders, knees and quads — could be to help relieve sinus issues, which Williams has dealt with for years.

“Could” is the operative word here — Williams hasn’t spoken about the squares on the record. The concept behind taping the face is that it may alleviate pressure resulting from inflamed or congested sinuses.

Serena Williams’s outfits are always a topic of conversation at Grand Slam tournaments. For what could be the last major of her career, she’s going out dripping in diamonds — or at least making sure she looks like it.

Williams will sport a black Nike dress for her 21st appearance at the U.S. Open, inspired by figure skating costumes. The dress actually strikes a classic silhouette for a woman who’s worn denim skirts, one-legged catsuits and even a bubblegum pink blazer on court.

The outfit has meaning in its fabric, too — according to ESPN, the skirt has six layers, one for each of her U.S. Open titles.

With the crowd on Arthur Ashe Stadium certain to be on her side and a flawless first-round record at the U.S. Open bolstering her, Serena Williams will have several advantages Monday night before she strikes a ball.

To beat her, Danka Kovinic will have to play the match of her life.

The 27-year-old from Montenegro has yet to capture a WTA singles title, though she has logged her best year at the majors to date. She reached the third round at both the Australian Open and Roland Garros for the first time, clocking a gutsy, three-set victory against reigning U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu in Melbourne along the way.