"Her future is super bright" - Serena Williams gives credit to opponent after easy first round win

Serena Williams kicked off her Emilia-Romagna Open campaign with an easy victory over Italian teenager Lisa Pigato, as she prepares for the upcoming Roland Garros at the end of the month.

The top-seeded American powered past Pigato in an easy 6-3 6-2 first round encounter, although she had to recover from a deficit as her 17-year old opponent broke her first service game.

"The first game, she played really good and I needed to adjust to get back," Williams said. "It was a bit of both, figuring out her game as well."

Pigato was playing in her first WTA main draw match, having gained entry as a qualifier. However, the World No.572 impressed the 23-Grand time champion, who was full of nothing but compliments after the match.

"Lisa played really well," Williams added in her on-court interview. "She told me she was only 17. Her future is super-bright - she handled the moment well, so I look forward to cheering for her in the future."

The two shared a moment after the match, with Pigato approaching Williams and asking the American if she could take a picture with her.

"It's usually after the match, in the locker room, I take photos," she told the press. "It was really cool and gutsy. It was her first WTA main draw match, so I thought it was a really good opportunity to take a photo - she'll be able to look back on that in years. I wish I had done that with my first match, it would have been really cool."

Williams next faces Katerina Siniakova in the second round, as the World No.68 defeated Clara Tauson 6-1 6-3 in her opening round match.